BloodStained
by Nghi
Summary: (IK, AU) As a witness to a homicide, Kagome unwillingly becomes chained to her secret until her death. But the struggle to continue living becomes more challenging, and she is thrown deeper into an unstable life...
1. Chapter 1 View of Good Ol' Life

                                                                                           Blood-Stained

Disclaimer- Because these are annoying and countless writers have had their hearts broken over disclaimers, this goes for all chapters! *clears throat* I.Don't.Own.Anything. :( But I'd love to!

A/N: I've been thinking a while about this fic. Actually, after two months in a major writer's block, I finally thought of this idea in five minutes and decided to do this. See, I tried three stories before this, and they all jammed somewhere in the middle and lost their spark. The third story was going to be based on WW II, but my dad didn't want me briefing on the atomic bomb issue. I'll shut up now and let you read. The first chapter might be kind of boring, though. :( Hey! Read Chapter One Title!

                                                              Chapter 1~ View of Good Ol' Life

                                                                              _By: Nghi_

          At 23 years old, she just finished her last day in college. Now, all that was left before she could kiss campus grounds goodbye was a diploma. And let's not forget the graduation ceremony, but the important part was the diploma.

          **_Hurry…._**

          Her watch beeped 3:20 P.M., and Kagome stood up abruptly and yelled, "Yesssss!!!!"

          Then, she noticed the eerie quietness and opened her eyes to look around. Her classmates didn't follow suit; they just stared at her, muffling out the sounds of laughter. The professor glared at Kagome for disrupting the class and pointed to a hanging clock on the wall. It read 3:10 P.M.

          **_Rats…._**

          She brought her hands back down to her sides and sat down quickly. Mumbling a quick apology, Kagome concentrated on a pencil dot marked on the desk's surface. Another ten minutes before she would be released.

          Ten minutes was definitely too long….

                                                                              ~*~*~*~

          Kagome jumped from her seat and scrambled out the door when the bell rang. This was it; after tonight, she would be a college graduate! And she could finally focus on her job: filing secretary.

       O.K. So it's not the best job in the whole world, but it's part of a huge company. Who knows, I might get a promotion! 

            She was too busy thinking about her future as the President of the corporation that she didn't see a person in front of her. "Oomph!" Kagome grunted as she collided into the stranger and fell onto her butt.

          The stranger turned around, revealing the person to be a female. The shopping bags that she held dropped to the ground, and a soft but audible crack sounded in one of them.

          The girl's eyes widened after hearing the shatter, and she stared at the bags, unblinking. "Oh no," she whimpered, dropping to her knees to gather the belongings up. Tears started to form in her eyes.

          Kagome didn't expect that sort of reaction, but moved to help when she saw the girl struggling. "Oh jeez, I'm sorry…" she was cut off literally when she tried to hold on of the bags.

          The girl held a pocketknife in one hand, poised to attack again. The blade dripped some of Kagome's blood onto the ground. "Don't touch anything!" she screamed furiously. "Look what you did! You were trying to steal my property, weren't you? Weren't you?!?!"

          At first, Kagome was stunned when the girl swiped her with a weapon. But she became a little nervous as the girl started screaming. "No! No! I wasn't trying to steal anything," she answered, glancing at the knife now and then. "I was just trying to help. I didn't…."

          Here she was interrupted again when the girl started swinging the blade blindly in Kagome's direction. She backed out of the way just as the knife moved to where her shoulder would have been. "Liar! Everyone wants something from me!" the girl accused. "What do you want, huh?"

           **_O.K. Scratch helping. My #1 priority: get away from the lunatic!_**

          Kagome scrambled off the ground and across the street, leaving a hysterical girl to holler. But Kagome wasn't frightened by the fact that the girl started screaming; she bumped into those types of people all the time in Tokyo. Once a good distance away, she resumed her cheerful mood.

          Along the way, she stumbled into several other people and inanimate objects, including Mr. Takadomo, a salesperson, and a rolling basketball. But only two out of the six people yelled at her. That included Kagome's landlord, Mrs. Takadomo.

          "Oomph! Sorry," she apologized repeatedly when she bumped into Mrs. Takadomo on the fifth floor.

          The lamp she was holding clattered to the floor. It would have survived with a mere scratch, but the lamp decided to test its limit. It rolled down the stairs with an evil thump each time along the way. Before it reached the fourth floor, the lamp smashed into itty-bitty pieces.

          "No, you idiot!" Mrs. Takadomo shrieked. "That lamp was priceless! Look what happens when you let a clumsy girl live here!" she yelled more to herself than Kagome.

          Kagome moved quickly away from the raging woman. She uttered another 'sorry' and began edging up the stairs without Mrs. Takadomo noticing.

          **_How can someone so mean have such a nice son?_**

          She reached her apartment at last and entered quietly as possible. Her next-door neighbor had very sensitive ears and was, unfortunately, a light sleeper. And yes, he often took naps. 

          Kagome walked into the bathroom and rummaged for some disinfectant and bandage for her hand. She nearly screamed in pain as the disinfectant did its work and cleaned out bacteria. It also produced a major sting on her skin. Bandaging the wound, she smiled happily as the thought of infected skin no longer plagued her.

          As she tiptoed into the kitchen for a snack, she suddenly remembered why she was ecstatic in the first place. "I'm graduating!" she shrieked out loud, clapping her hands in an exciting manner.

          **_Oh yeah! I have to call Mom and Souta and Grandpa and Buyo…._**

          The list went on and on until Kagome couldn't think of anyone else. Picking up her phone, she dialed her home number and fidgeted impatiently for someone to pick up.

          "Hullo?" a dull voice answered. "Whaddaya want?"

          At the end of the other line, Kagome heard a reproachful voice, followed by a grumble. "I mean, hello," the voice now shaped into a sugary, pleasant one. "What can I be of service to you?"

          "I'm graduating tonight!" Kagome blurted out, unable to hold the news in any longer. As an afterthought, she added, "Hello to you, too. Are you sure you'll make it to my ceremony tonight?"

          There wasn't an answer, just a bit of a shuffling sound. A new voice asked came up on the phone. "Hello?" it modeled after Souta's. "How can I be of service to you?"

          **_Souta and his video games…._**

          "I'm graduating tonight!" Kagome repeated. "Think you, Souta, Grandpa, and Buyo can make it to my ceremony?"

          Her mom screamed out of excitement, but forgot to remove the phone away from her mouth. "Tonight's the night you graduate?!?! Why didn't I write this down? Of course I'll be there! Oh, my baby's finally all grown up…."

          She started to cry, cutting off the flow of questions and nonsensical statements. Once Kagome cleared her head of ringing, she tried to comfort her mom.

          "Don't worry, you still have Souta," Kagome offered. "And he has another eight years left before he doesn't need you anymore. So…."

           A knock echoed sharply throughout the apartment, and she reluctantly put her sobbing mother on hold.

          **_Let me guess; it's my happy next-door neighbor._**

           Her guess was correct. He leaned against the doorframe, white hair that reached to his lower back and swaying slightly. His eyes glared at her for being so noisy. "This crazy dog needs his sleep."

          Kagome nearly rolled her eyes, but said instead, "Oh yes, Mr. Tsuyo. It was a mistake for being so loud."

           "It's the same excuse, you little girl. Shut up!" he snapped rather unpleasantly.

          She had half a mind to kick the rude, little, old man down the stairs. Her foot itched to do so, too. But she figured that since she would be spending most of her time in the apartment instead of a library, she should start off on the right foot with him… again. "I'm sorry for disrupting your naptime, but I was excited about tonight. Do you want to come to my graduation?"

           "No, thanks. This dog's gonna party at the club tonight," Mr. Tsuyo started doing some shaky disco moves to emphasize his plans.

          Kagome didn't say bye or anything; she just shut the door, leaving Mr. Tsuyo to dance alone in the hallway.

          **_Sad and pathetic._**

          She went back to calming her mother.

                                                                             ~*~*~*~

           7 P.M. came by like lightning; one minute Kagome was dressing herself in the gown, and the next someone was driving her to the college.

          "I'm so nervous!" Aki babbled with a slight smile. "I mean, in three hours, we'll be living our lives separately. No more psychology class. No more physics…."

          "And no more advanced math stuff and equations!" squealed Kagome. "And don't forget: no more professors and tests and…."

          Within half an hour, the two reached college. During the day, the building was drabby and resembled a state prison. But it was a different story when the college was lit at night with candles and colorful streamers hung everywhere. 

          "Wow… the committee did well," Aki observed.

          "Kagome!"

          Looking around, she searched for the person that yelled out her name. Spotting her family, she ventured off on her own, bidding Aki a temporary farewell. "Hi… uurgh…."

          Her mother pulled her immediately into a too-fierce hug. "Oh, you've grown so much in three months!" she cried, squeezing even harder.

          "T-thanks…" Kagome rasped, turning several shades of unhealthy colors.

          "Come, dear. Kagome must get going now," her grandpa advised, completely oblivious that he had saved his granddaughter.

          Letting go reluctantly, Mrs. Higurashi and the rest of the family started to leave, but Kagome stopped them. "Wait! Where's Buyo?"

          Everyone shifted around on one foot to the other, ignoring eye contact. They didn't know how to explain this situation…. Looking around, Grandpa was satisfied that no one was watching the family and opened his bulky coat. Kagome's eyes widened unnaturally at the sight; Buyo was stuffed in one of the pockets like some sort of thing! The poor cat was squished to near-death, and he wasn't pleased. He even meowed his protest against this cruelty. Closing his coat quickly, he acted nonchalant and pretended that he didn't hear the meow. "They didn't allow pets," he explained in an undertone.

          **_No wonder there was a bump…._**

          "So Grandpa decided to smuggle the cat through pockets," Souta explained. "Now let's go. I'm tired of standing around."

          Just as they left, the dean came out in front of the conversing crowd of students.

          "Alright, people," he ordered, clapping his hands together. "Stop the talking… O.K. Now, we're going to begin the ceremony."

          The students calmed down, but they were twitching nervously. Some attempted to calm themselves with traditional methods such as babbling, doing some calm breathing, or the exact opposite of that: hyperventilating. Any minute now and the music would begin….

          "So, what are your plans for next year?" Aki asked, while surveying the classmates' actions. She was one who often babbled, nervous or not.

          "Hmmm…?"

          "What's your plans when we're out of college?"

          "Oh… I guess concentrating on my work," Kagome replied. She was too busy chewing half of her thumbnail to pay attention.

          "Really?" Aki asked, suddenly interested. "What's your job?"

          "President of the Cat-Flavored Mix Co.," she said automatically without thinking.

          Aki's eyes popped out of its sockets and she gaped at Kagome. "What? You're… the President of… Cat-Flavored Mix Co.?!?!" she shrieked. "Oh.My.God!!!! When did you become head manager of that famous company?"

          Kagome didn't answer; she was in a state of shock at what she just let slip out of her mouth.

          **_Don't spread the news about my nonexistent job… don't spread news about my nonexistent job…._**

          "Wait! What I meant was that… see, I… it's not really… being President…" she stumbled over her words like a true pro.

          **_Get the hint! Don't say anything; keep quiet, keep…_**

          "I have to tell everyone about this!" Aki said, eyes all glittering. "You're executive of one of the biggest names in cat history! This is even bigger than when the foreign exchange student guy was bitten by an attacking monkey at the national zoo!!!" she waved her hands excitedly at the mention of 'executive'.

          **_quiet._**

          She paid no attention to a pleading Kagome and left her behind in search of the dean; Kagome's begging was shortly cut when the music began playing. She was pushed back along with the stampeding graduates.

          **_Rats! I have to wait… let's just hope for the best in my little situation: Aki loses the ability to speak._**

          She stood in a random line, not caring if she was in the right one or not. "Hey," one annoying kid butted into her thoughts. "You're in the 'A' section. Your last name is 'H'!"

          She ignored him and continued searching for Aki's face.

          **_Aki better not tell anyone about this!_**

          The music stopped for a second, then restarted. This cued the students to go down the aisles.

          Forgetting about the cat food/President trouble for a moment, Kagome obliged like the rest and began walking. As she entered the grand auditorium, she felt nervous and excited altogether at the sight of so many people.

          **_Breathe. Breathe._**

          She settled in the front row and focused on the beaming dean instead of the pointed glare(s) directed at her from the rest of the 'A' section. Spotting Aki, Kagome attempted to tell her through a Neanderthal-like sign language the message she was trying to convey earlier.

          It didn't work.

          Aki misinterpreted the signals as a thumbs-up for graduating college instead of failing, so she raised her thumb back and wriggled it.

          **_Yep, she told._**

          Kagome decided to not think about the little white lie that popped out of her mouth. What were the chances of Aki telling anyone after Kagome repeatedly denied it 16 times?

          **_It's like talking to a brick wall._**

          "Now, on this day…."

          Her thoughts were put on hold as the dean started the usual graduating words. This was it; she was ten minutes away from the diploma!

          "…I give you the class of 2002!" the dean spoke loudly on this part. People started clapping and whistling while others snapped away pictures. Many parents were crying from happiness; if not, grieving that their babies were actual adults now.

          Next part: diploma. "Ayaiki, Morei," the dean called out. The applause had just died out and restarted again. 15 minutes later, several more names were called out, and they had reached the 'H' section.

          **_I'm next!_**

          "Higurashi, Kagome."

          Standing up, she proudly walked towards him, head held high.

          **_Left foot front… right foot front… don't trip!_**

          The dean was smiling and holding the precious piece of paper in his hands. Her own hand was reaching out to claim it. Then, the moment was yanked from her in a few moments.

          A sharp scream emitted throughout the warm, humid air. The woman who screamed stood on her chair, swatting away a creature pawing at her legs. "I hate cats, I hate cats, I hate pets!" she wailed, trying to back even further up the chair.

           **_Grandpa…._**

           One security guard walked sheepishly into the middle aisle, trying to appear as part of the guests. But it was quite obvious that he stood out, with his uniform and all.

          **_Must.Not.Kill.Grandpa._**

          As he neared Buyo, the cat sensed the intruder and forgot about the fish-smelling lady. He didn't like the guard and immediately screeched, backing up. Surprisingly for a fat cat, he moved very fast and within seconds, had found himself outside the auditorium/college and in a tree.

           "Buyo, come down here!" Grandpa shouted, hobbling outside. The guard came along with him and both tried to persuade the stubborn feline down the 8-foot tree. 

          Everyone, including the dean, clambered into the front lawn and watched as the guard and Grandpa make a lot of commotion as they did shoulder-to-shoulder teamwork. They failed miserably three times before the guard announced, "No worries, we're just going to request some backup."

           Fifteen minutes later, a fire truck parked in front of the college. A firefighter dragged a 9-foot ladder along with him and called lazily, "Move out; make way for the firefighter."

           **_And I haven't gotten my diploma yet!_**

          Kagome didn't want to see what happened next. The last time someone handled Buyo, his leg became one ugly, scratching post. Not pretty.

           As expected, the whole family sighed when the firefighter climbed up and attempted to lift the cat and its claws from the trunk. They didn't cringe when he suddenly yelped like a girl and roared, "Why you little…."

           At that point, Buyo really didn't like the firefighter and started using his face as a claw sharpener. The grown man screamed yet again and scrambled down the ladder. "That cat's got problem!" he whimpered, clutching his red hand.

           Mrs. Higurashi straightened up for a moment and said, "Don't worry about Buyo, Kagome. I'll get that darling cat down."

           Where a grown, young firefighter failed, a middle-aged woman brought the cat down in a knee-length skirt, no less! She marched to the ladder and climbed up the steps determinedly. Following the act was a lot of creaking and rustling with coaxing words.

           "Buy-o! Come here… I won't hurt you."

           There was a contented purr, a sign that Mrs. Higurashi was rubbing the cat's head. Then, two legs found the ladder, and she held Buyo while descending towards the ground.

          "That wasn't too bad," she said cheerfully, trying to pick scattered twigs from her hair.

          Kagome, who still didn't get her diploma, already scolded Grandpa for stuffing Buyo into a pocket in the first place and walked over to her mother. "Mom! Are you O.K.? Buyo, you bad cat!"

          The only response from it was a choking sound, and a hairball made home on her blue graduation gown.

          "Kagome!" the dean announced suddenly. His face wasn't looking very pleasant. In fact, it looked really red.

          **_Uh-oh…._**

          "I'm so sorry," she began to repeat over and over.

          "I didn't know you were the President of Cat-Flavored Mix Co.!" he interrupted.

          **_An early gift from Buyo and a confrontation with Mr. Dean. Yay me._**

          This was going to be a long night….

*

*

A/N: Yeah… long. I know... I'm sorry if it didn't live up to its name and genre… yet. The next chapter will be better. Oh, and read the title! It often tells if the next chapter will be good or not. I promise this will be the only boring chapter, in my opinion, at least. ^_^ Also, my elder cousin worried me about this; the first chapter was off-genre. Okay, so this chapter isn't really suspense, but I want to clarify that there is a reason for putting in a chapter like this. Chapter 1 is kind of irrelevant to the whole plot, but if you read it, this gives you a better sense of what Kagome's old life was like. Yeah, so I guess this will be the only full-length humor chapter, unless you count the epilogue I'm going to do. ^_^ On the bright side, there won't be 100% violence; on Scout's Honor, I will include fluff and humorous… stuff. :) 

Next chapter: Fine Lines


	2. Chapter 2 Fine Lines

                                                                                              Blood-Stained

A/N: I just finished watching 'Green Dragon'. It was so sad! It's based on the Vietnam War, and at times I wanted to cry. Man, the main character had it bad: pushed around, lost a sister. :( Anyways, here's where the real plot begins. Oh yes, and I'm not exactly the blood/violence/gore type of person. It gives me the creeps, especially if it's depicted really well in movies. So why am I exactly writing a blood/violence/gore fic? Because God decided to give me the ability to think up of wonderful ideas such as those. -_-* 

                                                                     Chapter 2 ~ Fine Lines

          She loved her job! Well, maybe that was an overstatement. She liked her job… not exactly. Filing secretary was an O.K. job.

          **_Aw, what kind of joke is this? It gets as exciting as watching Grandpa take his mid-afternoon nap._**

          Kagome wanted to snort out loud; the most exciting phenomenon that happened in her area of 'work' was when the copy machine broke down for mysterious reasons and xeroxed mooning pictures.

          **_The highest point of my life is a very low point._**

          She finished putting the files in alphabetical order and slammed the cabinet shut. This job was going to murder her with boredom. And she definitely needed a change in the environment. There was no way Kagome was going to stay for another month if she was surrounded by coworkers who still laughed and 'ooh'ed at butt imprints on paper.

          "Look… is that a birthmark?" a tall, lanky female asked. She clamped a hand over her mouth and began to giggle, paper shaking in her hand. The guy she was talking to ripped the paper away and examined it closer before starting to laugh along.

          **_Oh brother…._**

          Kagome rolled her eyes discreetly before walking out of the room. Just how many copies did the machine produce? 

          **_Probably more than enough to give me nightmares for the rest of my life….  _**

          She passed by mindlessly of hundreds of thousands of cubicles. Reaching hers at the end of the countless rows, Kagome promptly plopped into her chair. It just so happened that her cubicle was facing an apartment. It was even better that all the windows of the apartment had no blinds, making every movement inside the place detectable.

          **_Thank God I've only seen PG-13._**

          And Kagome had no intention of seeing past that rating.

                                                                                ~*~*~*~

          **_Stupid… boss…._**

          Kagome gritted her teeth while rearranging the folders and copying memos simultaneously. "I.Hate.Bosses," she grumbled, slamming the cabinet with so much force that the table beside it shook a bit.

          Why, oh why, did Boss think that out of all the people working here she would love to do a double shift? How would he know that she would accept the offer? He didn't, because Boss ran out the door before Kagome could protest. Yep, she needed a new job.

          **_And maybe someone who'll listen to me if they're in charge…._**

          She grabbed the memos from the machine, almost if mad at it, and stomped out of the room. Marching up the stairs, she entered the fifth floor… and dropped all the copies on to the floor.

          **_…._**

          In the vast office, filled with paintings and spacious surroundings (if compared to her tiny, squished cubicle), sat one desk smack dab in the middle of its glory. That's right, one. Uno, un, mot, whatever language it was, there was one (1) desk.

          Kagome's eye was twitching.

          **_All that time… and I only needed one copy?!?!_**

          She dumped every single copy into a trashcan and slapped a piece of paper on the desk. That boss of hers was irritating….

                                                                              ~*~*~*~

          Running into her office, Kagome's watch beeped 11:30 P.M. "Great," she muttered, glaring at the time. "Let's add bags to my eyes." 

          She hurriedly stuffed work things into her briefcase and tried to shut off the computer. Sadly, it froze, and she had to wait 15 minutes impatiently.

          **_Hurry up!_**

          To pass time, Kagome began to examine her workplace. Computer was centered on table, picture of family was to the right, butt picture… oh never mind. That paper just went down the trash.

          She closed her eyes and wished for the computer to end faster. She thanked God that she wasn't blind for working in the dark for so long.

          **_I have to buy a lamp._**

          Her sight wandered to the world outside this window. The streets outside were deserted. But it was common; Kagome referred to the section of Tokyo as the 'perfect place'. All the children had practically exact bedtimes, and no one, almost no one, was seen on the streets after 11 P.M.

          **_Ooh, I can't…._**

          She began to turn her attention towards the computer again, but a sudden movement caught her eyes. Swiveling around casually, Kagome expected a raccoon, squirrel, or something little moving.

          It was the apartment across her cubicle.

          **_Uurgh… not another makeout… never mind. Light's turned on._**

          From her point of view, she saw a young brunette, not much older than her, turn on the dim bedside lamp hurriedly, almost afraid.

          **_What's she up to?_**

          Kagome's curiosity overpowered her, and she sat on her chair with interest at the scene. Her computer was long gone shut.

          She observed as the girl began searching around the tiny room, flipping the satin purple bed covers over a few times. Kagome saw how the girl became even more panicky as the object wasn't under the bed and return to the clustering objects lying around the floor.

          **_Did she lose something?_**

          Kagome was so involved at inspecting the girl's strange actions that when another figure entered the room, she was surprised.

          **_Probably a hubby or…._**

          She froze instantly in the soft leather chair. Her fine hair at the back of the neck stood on its little ends, and a very cold sweat swept throughout her body. Goosebumps prickled all over her skin, and her gray-blue eyes focused on its target: the new figure.

          The 'figure' turned out to be a male, a very menacing one. He had endless tattoos plastered all over his scrawny-looking arms. But those arms were still dangerous, nonetheless. With several piercings and the awful outfit, that added to the appearance.

          Kagome watched, not really liking the newcomer, as the man walked slowly over to the girl. She scrambled off the floor and attempted to run away. It was a futile try; the man brought out an arm and grabbed her hair. With a powerful yank, he forced her to the wooden floor. What made the whole thing even creepier was the smile on his lips that never wavered. His smile and body loomed over the girl, and his mouth moved slightly, speaking. It suddenly occurred to her how escaping was worthless, so she did the next best thing; she screamed. She yelled for three, long minutes, and no one came bolting through the door. 

          **_They can't hear her._**

          Kagome's eyes widened, and she found herself scared, as if it was she being threatened. The girl was in a terrible abusive relationship!

          **_Oh my God…. _**

          The man bent down and picked her up by the collar of the shirt. Then, he released her quickly and grabbed her on both sides of the shoulders, and he shook her. He continued, even after the girl stopped shouting and started crying. Kagome could only make out from the girl's moving lips, "Stop. Stop!"

          Strangely, he did after a moment. It seemed as if he was going to leave her alone. But the smile….

          As if in a silent movie, his hand drew back and curled into an iron-like ball. In slow motion, it came forward and found its way to the girl's face. She would have probably been sent flying against the wall, but the man's other hand gripped behind her neck. Then, the slow motion ended and it happened at regular speed. Her head snapped back, and it lolled backwards. Kagome believed the girl was dead for a moment; the head and neck were at an odd angle. 

          To make matters worse, the man pummeled, each time with more brute force, the girl's face until it was hardly recognizable. Her bleeding, split lips, swollen eyes, purple cheekbones, bleeding nose, serious gash across her face….

          Kagome's grip tightened around the armrest.

          The man finally released the girl some five minutes later, and she crumpled to the ground. He brushed past her, searching for something in the closet. She was trying to breathe, but it wasn't working easily. Finally giving up and breathing through her mouth, she turned around to see what the man was doing. Her mouth moved to speak.

          **_No!_**

          He held a pistol, aimed at her forehead. The girl tried to scramble off the floor and away from shooting range, but he shot one bullet into her left calf, immobilizing her. One down, three more body parts….

          And the man did just that. In three more bullets, the rest of her legs and arms were about as helpful as a chicken running around without a head. He loomed over her once more and grinned. It was disturbingly happy, like he gained a personal achievement.

          The guy pressed the pistol to her forehead, smiling and laughing quietly while the brunette cried. He spoke once more, lips still moving slightly. Then he gave a little wave and pressed the trigger.

          Right there at the moment, Kagome's world stopped. Her heart stopped, her breathing stopped, the bullet stopped, time had stopped itself.

          **_H-he killed…._**

          Things resumed as the bullet seared viciously through the girl's head, tearing bloody chunks along the way. When the bullet made way out of her, she was dead. A cold, lifeless, bleeding corpse. Blood sprayed onto the bedroom window, floor, man, everywhere. Slumping to the ground, the brunette lay on the floor, unfocused eyes looking out the window. And at Kagome.

          The man laughed and began kicking the body in the ribs. Still laughing, he sauntered up to the table next to the bed and began rifling through its content leisurely. Once he found his prize, a bag containing a white substance, he stuffed it into his pockets, and resumed to his delighted activity. Suddenly, he stopped and froze for a second. Turning around, the man stared out the window along with the brunette. He stared at the work building. He stared at a certain cubicle, where a certain person was watching the entire thing.

          Kagome wanted to draw back sharply, but stopped herself.

          **_Me no buy lamp._**

          But she felt nervous as the man kept gazing.

          **_He can't see me; I'm wearing all black._**

          She stilled her body, not daring to breathe even. The man looked onwards for another good 20 minutes before finally releasing it and smiled. He walked over to the corpse and placed his hands into the puddle of blood still coming out of it. Standing up, he glided eerily over to the glass window; he began inscribing.

          Kagome still didn't move; she dug her nails into the armrest and watched the man with flickering eyes.

          Once he was done, he backed off to look at his artwork; Kagome's breath was knocked out of her and her insides turned into jelly.

          **I SEE YOU.**

          The lamp was turned off, showing he left the room. But she stayed, not wanting to leave. On the glass, the words were running.

                                                                                       ~*~*~*~

          That night, Kagome didn't come home. She made the best use of an upright chair and a cold table.

          **_I'm not going anywhere tonight._**

          She peeked out of the window every minute, hoping he would visibly exit the building. It looked as if the man had left; he was nowhere to be seen. Yet, Kagome refused to take chances; she had to see him leave. 

          **_Maybe the message was directed to the pigeons or something. After all, many psychotic killers are like that: crazy, lunatic, people who talk to inanimate objects, like shoes…._**

          Somehow, she'd manage to convince herself with that story. Throughout her painful night, she had nightmares about the event. 

          Morning came just as she shut her eyes, and a cheery voice chirped, "Ka-go-me!"

          "Huh? Wha…?" she sat up quickly and looked around wildly. Her neck cracked at the quick movement, and she winced. "Ow…."

          Kagome straightened up a bit and turned when her name was said again. "What?"

          "Oh, you didn't sleep inside the building again, did you? 'Cuz you look terribly awful. Not to mention wrinkly," the woman stated, scrunching up her nose for effect.

          Kagome started thumbing through blank papers, playing with the hem of her skirt, anything to keep her hands busy. If it weren't for mindless distractions, the hands would've magically appeared around the woman's neck and tightened.

          "No, I was just staying up all night," she replied casually. Well, it was part of the truth.

          "Doing what?" the woman prodded.

          God, this woman was nosy! But Kagome was going to have to fend the woman off herself. "Gee, I was disco dancing with Boss in the middle of the lounging room. Whaddaya think?"

          The woman 'hmmph'ed and looked down at Kagome with a glare. "You don't have to bite my head off just because I'm asking you several questions. Here are the files you need to run off copies for," she said, thrusting all the papers onto Kagome's lap before bounding down the hallway.

          Kagome stared at the files with a blank face.

          **_I hate my job and salary._**

          She looked through them, giving off negative comments now and then. She stopped at one particular file and skimmed the contents with an incredulous look.

          **_They need a whole meeting to discuss about the window frame possibilities?!?!_**

          "We want peach-colored border frames… wait, make that eggshell," Kagome mimicked under her breath, not believing what she just read. The file about windows suddenly reminded her of something familiar, and she froze, her back against the apartment.

          **_It was real._**

          Kagome didn't want to believe it, that she was the first and last witness to the brunette's death. She didn't want to turn around, didn't want to see the body lying on the floor, feeling the dead eyes boring a hole into her. But she knew what she saw, and her body automatically turned around for another look. It was as if it was telling her to grip reality and its events.

          Her eyes widened into mini saucers, and the files fell to a clatter on the floor. Her mouth opened and closed, yet no noise was made.

          The window was streak-free.

           No blood, words, or even dust! With a closer look inside the apartment, she saw that the body wasn't there. And the pistol wasn't, either.

          **_Wha…._**

          "Kagome, are you OK?" one of the employees asked while passing by.

          "Um…" she shook her head for a second, "when you came to work, did you happen to see anything… I dunno, weird in that home over there?"

          The employee shook her head slowly, giving Kagome a confused look. "Can't say. I pass by that building underneath the floor, not above. Besides, I work on the other side of this building. Anyways, from the view here, it looks like everything's fine."

          "Oh."

          So it was just a dream! But it was so vivid and colorful…. 

          **_Stop it, Kagome! It was a nightmare, and only a nightmare. Most of the ones you have are supposed to be reality-like. They are supposed to be conjured from the depths of your worst fears…. I guess mine is being blown in the forehead._**

          Kagome nodded at the explanation and her posture visibly relaxed. All that time, and it was just in her head! "I'm never working double shift again!" she pronounced, smile returning to her face.

          The entire day, she was in a chipper mood, not losing patience when the klutzy intern spilled cold coffee all over her outfit. It was dirty anyways. When her boss sought after her to talk about tonight's shift, she yelled abruptly, "No!"

          Boss looked at her funnily, and Kagome berated herself for shouting. "Um… I mean, you see, last night I tripped… um, over the stairs, so I… I have a phobia… for climbing to the fifth floor! And… er… I can't go past the fourth floor… er, which is here!"

          He shrugged and ran off, seeking new people. He found the klutzy intern to do it.

          Around 7 P.M., she packed up and headed for home. "Going now!"

          Walking quickly out of her work place, Kagome hailed a cab and directed the driver to her apartment. "Thanks," she mumbled, stumbling out of the car. Who can blame her for being exhausted? She slept on top of a stapler, after all.

          She climbed wearily up the five floors, making sure to keep to the right. And when Mrs. Takadomo dropped another priceless lamp, she kept trudging along, ignoring the rude comments made by her landlord. 

          **_Yes… home sweet home._**

          As Kagome entered her apartment, she suddenly had this tingling sensation. It freaked her out because usually when she had these little senses, it meant that something surprising was going to happen.

          And shocking it was.

          She placed her briefcase on the couch and walked into the kitchen for a snack. Sometimes, habits can be hard to overcome.

          She halted to a stop.

          **_More… blood….   _** 

          The table had blood splattered across it like a painting. Dried blood was all over the chairs. The refrigerator was the worst; handprints were smeared all over it. Even more was a small but visible dent located just below the handle of the fridge. Had it not been for her refrigerator, Kagome would've assumed that some sloppy painters visited her apartment.

          **_Just like the nightmare…. _**

          Suddenly, she felt sickened to her stomach. And the stench wasn't helping.

          She turned away, prepared to bring out Windex and paper towels to clean up the mess, but something else- near the floor- caught her eyes. Turning around, she looked at the lower kitchen cabinet and stifled a scream.

          The blood was running.

          **_This is not good. Not good!_**

          Kagome backed away from the cabinet, clutching her sleeves tightly. Where did all the blood come from? How did it get here?

          She felt something warm and liquid dribble down her neck. Jumping away, she swatted at her neck rapidly.

          **_Water…?_**

          As she pulled back to examine the assumed water, her face contorted into surprise. The liquid wasn't water, unless red food coloring was added to it. It suddenly occurred to her just what the discovery might be, and she didn't like it.

          **_No…._**

          Almost afraid to what she would see, Kagome raised her eyes slowly to the top kitchen cabinet.

          Her eyes met Mr. Tsuyo's head, and she let out the held scream.

          Mr. Tsuyo was propped up against the wall, staring straight ahead. His forehead held a small, see-through hole. His hair splashed around him, and they were soaked, showing little of his naturally white mane. 

          The base of his neck was jarred and jagged, showing some pink, nude flesh. Indication showed it wasn't a very clean cut. Blood was oozing from his decapitated head and gently rolled down the cabinet.

          The worst thing about the head was his stare. Truth be told, it wasn't even a stare. He had no eyeballs; from the looks of things, they were carved out with some sharp object. The limp nerves that were supposed to be attached to his eyes were hanging out of his lids. His eyes were still bleeding.

          **_The message…. _**

          Kagome turned away, not wanting to stare at part of Mr. Tsuyo's corpse. There was no way she was going to clean his head.

          **_OK, breathe. There is no way that the crazed murderer who was here will get me. What are the chances of that?_**

         She walked carefully over to the sink, prepared to take a long drink of water. As she did, her knee bumped against the cupboard beneath the sink. It sounded with a dull thump, and her attention snapped to that at once.

         ** _It's supposed to sound hollow….  _**

          She unlatched the hook slowly, and the weight of the object gave and tumbled out.

          Actually, they were objects.

          Screaming in terror, Kagome ran backwards as Mr. Tsuyo's body parts fell onto the middle of her kitchen, hacked into pieces. Two pairs of arms… wait, two?!?!

          Then a girl's head rolled out somewhere amidst the flesh. It was very brief before it was covered with more arms and legs, but Kagome saw it.

          She ran smack into the top kitchen cabinet, and Mr. Tsuyo's head tumbled off, rolling and leaving a trail of blood along the way. It fell besides her, brushing her arm slightly.

          Crying, she scrambled out of the room and slipped on a pool of blood. She cried even more as she fell and hit her knee in an odd position on a chair. Getting up again, Kagome limped to the phone to dial the police's number.

          There was no way she was going to be able to figure this out on her own… how two people's body parts were splattered all over her room, how the apartment across from her work didn't have any signs of blood or pistol.

          A little noise caught her attention; she whirled around to see who was there. At the same time, something hard and cool connected with her head, and she felt pain shoot throughout her head.

           Then the hurt was gone, and she felt tired.

          **_Nap might be nice….  _**_ _

           As Kagome dropped to the floor and closed her eyes willingly, she thought she heard a distant gleeful voice speaking.

*

*

A/N: *cough* Well, what do you think? Yeah… I'm trying my best to make you squirm just a teensy bit. If you were feeling a bit nauseous for one second, I'm happy with that! Hehe…. No, I'm not a crazed killer and I'm not depressed. I just get wonderfully twisted ideas. Oh… this will be the only all-violent chapter, too, I think. ^_^ The rest of the characters will be introduced in the fourth chapter, too.

Next chapter: Starting Over  

          **__**


	3. Chapter 3 Starting Over

                                                                                              Blood-Stained

A/N: Here's the story. Yeah…. Oh! And to answer someone's comment, I have to say that I don't really think the graduation ceremony in Japan goes according to that, either. And about that guy description thing, I don't really know if it's too vague or not… maybe I'm not into the whole character description thing? Hehe… ^_^ Oh, and just be glad that for the graduation celebration, I didn't include the students throwing their hats into the air! To tell you the truth, the first thing that popped into my mind while I was writing the scene was 1) how most students in America graduated from college/high school and 2) Legally BLonde. Yes, I have some imagination, don't I? One more thing (yes, I have two LONG A/N in this chapter.), this is probably the fastest update I've done… in my life. So I'll be relaxing my butt off for the rest of the week… or I might be writing the next chapter…. Really, it might be a tad boring, considering she meets the rest of the characters in the next chapter. Well, not really… but hey, I'm trying here! So don't expect full-blown goriness. And I lied last chapter; that wasn't the only all-violence chapter. ^_^ Ooh… and should I make this into an R-rated story? In my opinion, I think it should still be PG-13… I mean, it's just REALLY, REALLY intense violence/gore/death. ^_^() What do you think? Well… maybe it'll be violence for now… who knows, maybe I'll….

                                                                     Chapter 3 ~ Starting Over

                   It hurt. The throbbing ache in her head was beyond words. 'It hurt' barely brushed the true pain she felt right now.

                   **BEEP. BEEP.**

                   That noise… whatever it was, it annoyed her, grating on her last, wired nerve.

                   **_Shut up, shut up, shut up!_**

                    Kagome's eyes snapped open, and she saw white. Lots and lots of white.

                   **_I'm not dead… I'm not dead… But if I was, that would be cool!_**

                   A face appeared over hers, one that would be described as 'pruny'. And it scared the poop out of Kagome. She screamed out of instinct, as did the man, also.

                   "Who are you? Do I know you? Are you God?" Kagome thrust herself from her relaxed, lying position and landed on her feet. She didn't know karate, so she stood in some sort of blank defense stance.

                   **_Thank my lucky stars I watch kung fu movies._**

                   The elder man was dressed in white, much like the room. He wore a stethoscope around his neck and held a clipboard in one hand. He recovered slightly faster than her and answered, "Dr. Koru, you do now, and no."

                   "Oh, so I'm not dead? It would've been nice to pass through solid stuff."

                   Kagome saw Dr. Koru's look and his scribbling on the clipboard. She detected a slight mumble associated with "delusional", too.

****

**_              Now he thinks I'm wrong in the head._**

                   "But I'm really glad that I'm well and I wouldn't trade my life for the ability to be invisible and forget what I'm saying right now."

                   Dr. Koru happily complied and toddled to the hospital bed. "Why don't you lie down again? If you stay up and longer, you're bound to get a wonderful headache."

                   Kagome took his advice and snuggled back under the warm sheet covers. All the moving around caused her head to welcome another headache… no, migraine.

                   She winced and drew up a hand to her forehead. There was something soft covering half her head. "What's this?"

                   "You don't know?" the doctor looked surprised. "It's the bandage!"

                   "Yeah, but why is it here?"

                   "Because you were bleeding."

                   **_Does he have to make it so hard?_**

                   "Why are there bandages on my head which is currently sporting an ex-bleeding cut?" Kagome rephrased her question.

                   Dr. Koru blinked. "You could've just said, 'Why am I in the hospital?'"

                   "Just answer the question," Kagome snapped. The migraine was definitely taking points off her tactful chart.

                   "Alright, no need to pop a vein or artery," he said gently, "Well, your landlord entered your apartment, screaming about some priceless object. She saw you unconscious on the floor, head bleeding, and holding a bloody bat. So she panicked and did the first thing on her mind; she called the police, who, in turn, called the ambulance. And that's how you got here."

                   He finished with a flourish and opened his mouth to speak again, but a nurse rushed into the room, exclaiming, "We got an emergency. Someone tried to drive an automated wheelchair off a two feet building."

                   "So? That's up to my knee."

                   "The 80 year old broke a leg and two ribs."

                   "… OK. I'll be back tomorrow morning to check on you," Dr. Koru advised while jumping out of his seat. He left Kagome all alone to her painful thoughts.

                   **_Wait… what bloody bat? I had no bat with me in the first place! I didn't knock myself out, if that's what he was implying. It was the crazy lunatic who made mince meat out of Mr. Tsuyo and the girl!_**

                   She shivered at the memory. That wasn't pleasant to think about.

                   Another thought struck her; what if people thought she was a mental suicide attempter? She was emotional at certain times, but never this far.

                   **_And… what if they think… the heap of legs and arms in my kitchen was my doing?_**

                   Leaving her alone wasn't really a bright idea after all; this was too much for her to handle.

                   **_This just isn't one of those months where you win the lottery by some fated chance, is it?_**

                   She curled into a fetal position as the unwanted memory produced itself into her mind, and she felt a slight draft in her room. Kagome never wanted to see that sort of thing happen again.

                                                                             ~*~*~*~

                   Dr. Koru predicted that a few nights of rest in the hospital was all that was needed before Kagome could go on her way home. He was right. Days later, she was refreshed and no longer irritated by all the white surrounding her.

                   When he took off the bandage, Kagome felt around the front of her head for a bump or even a dent (Which she did not want). She could feel neither.

                   **_It healed that fast?!?!_**

                   She stumbled out of bed, much to Dr. Koru's protest, and into the bathroom. Kagome stared at the mirror; her head had a nasty, pink scar off to the right near her temple.

                   **_Am I becoming Harry Potter, too?_**

                   "A reminder of that night," Kagome whispered, finger slightly grazing the tender skin.

                   "Are you OK?" Dr. Koru asked, poking his head inside the bathroom.

                   "Yeah.. just traumatized for the rest of my life," Kagome said with sincerity.

                   "Aw, it's OK. You'll pass through this stage of your little life."

                   "Thanks for cheering me up."

                   Note the sarcasm.

                   "It's my job."

                                                                                  ~*~*~*~

                   Kagome was released later that day. She walked out of the exit, thanked Dr. Koru, and continued along.

                   She hailed a cab at the end of the block; she was too tired to walk the five miles home.

                   **_Or it's the pounding headache taking on…._**

                   Kagome paid the fee once she reached her apartment. This scene seemed very familiar to her, but she ignored it.

                   Stepping up the first step of the first round of steps, she fought down the nauseating feeling in the pit of her stomach and took a deep breath. "It's fine, nothing to worry," she mumbled nervously.

                   And Kagome climbed up the stairs slowly. When she passed by several inhabitants of the same building, she ignored their sympathetic gazes. Even Mrs. Takadomo, who usually passed by her without so much as a scorning look, sent her a pitying look.

                   **_I know I didn't hurt myself._**

                   She climbed up the five floors with sluggish movement; she felt the stairs were growing in quantity as she covered more distance. The stairs looked like it would never end, but it did. Reaching her apartment, Kagome took a deep breath and reached for the doorknob. Sticking her head inside, she peered around the room. It was still the same: couch here, coffee table there, clock on the wall. But this was just first impressions; it was the room behind the wall that counted.

                   **_Are the bodies still there? Is the girl still there? Are the…._**

                   Entering the kitchen, she saw that her kitchen was clean as ever. It greatly resembled one of those kitchen models the companies use for Mr. Clean commercials.

****Kagome inspected the place with a critical eye; there was just something abnormal about the kitchen, but she couldn't really put it into concrete proof or words. Something struck her odd in this room.

                   She began to search around the room, rifling through the drawers and such. Kagome just had to find something peculiar, something not part of the surroundings, and she would be at ease. 

                   Halfway through the search, she thought about her real purpose of the pursuit; what was it that made her feel so odd in the kitchen right now? 

                   Kagome kept this in mind as she rummaged through the knife drawer. As she handled the small, pointed knives, one nicked her where her wrist was, and a thin line of blood started to appear. She watched as a tiny drop of blood hit the counter.

                   And it hit her right then as she was watching her bleeding wrist.  

                   True, the police probably took the disbanded parts with them, and the janitor must have graciously removed the stains. But, how could he have known where all the stains were? 

                   **_Dried blood… smears… none was left. There should've been something left over from then. _**

                   The room was too perfect, too organized. This was unsettling, and it disturbed her very much.  

                   Kagome doubled her efforts in trying to find a slip up. The whole kitchen structure, it frustrated her. To her, it looked planned out just to confuse her. She couldn't explain it; everything was put in its proper place. But the whole room seemed to want to deliberately throw her off.

                   She was losing hope bit by bit as she began to search the entire area again. When Kagome came along the refrigerator, the last of the spaces, she took in a broad look at the whole refrigerator before opening it. 

                   Nothing.

                   Kagome was angry all of a sudden… she had no explanation or reason for this, but she was livid. For a moment, all she saw was red. Furious, she slammed the palms of her hands against the refrigerator, causing the wall behind it to shake a little.

                   God, why couldn't she shake off the feeling that something was going to happen?

                   As fast as it had come, the rage that had been brought out of her had vanished. Sighing, Kagome slumped to the floor, her legs collapsing beneath her, and she found herself leaning against the refrigerator, staring at her reflection in the steel.

                   Imagine her surprise when she saw a faint smudge marked across the steel. Jerking away from the door, she scuttled onto her legs to peer closer at the newfound finding. On a second glance, the smudge was a light red color.

                   **_Oh God, thank you…._**

                   Just like that, her suspicious intuition was gone. She smiled in relief for finding a mistake. It was so wide it could've split her face in half. She was so elated with her discovery that she didn't catch a fluid movement.

                   The liquid slid soundlessly down the door due to her earlier assault at the refrigerator. It kept downwards steadily, covering one inch by one inch slowly. Kagome never noticed; she was too busy analyzing the stain. She kept at it for fifteen minutes, just enough for the fluid to drip to the end of the silver gleaming refrigerator.

                   The drip would've reached the tiles, but Kagome's knee was jutted in the way; instead, it fell silently on top of her bare leg and resumed its peaceful journey. 

                   She felt something cold prickle her skin and stay there. Looking down, Kagome slapped the accused thing, thinking it was a little mosquito. "Ewww-w-w-w…"

                   **_It's… blood…?_**

                   For a moment, Kagome stared in surprise at her hand. More blood was in her kitchen? 

                   She sucked in air sharply and diverted her gaze somewhere else, as if her eyes were scalded. This wasn't supposed to be happening… there shouldn't be any more….

                   **_I need a new refrigerator._**

                   Kagome lifted a tremulous hand to her leg and swiped at it softly for the second time.

                   It was real.

                   **_How… where… what's the source?_**

                   She raised her head up towards the top of the refrigerator, where the trickle was coming. She knew she shouldn't peek… she knew she shouldn't even interfere with this little show. But the pull, the gravitational attraction of her deathly curiosity, drove her on. And so with only that pushing her forward, Kagome rose to her feet weakly, gripping the chair for support. 

                   She took the chair and moved it to the front of her. Bringing her entire body along with its weight to the top of the chair, Kagome stepped up. She tripped over her feet and ended up falling; she would've fallen to the floor, but the refrigerator blocked her way, and she ended up slamming against it. The trailing blood made contact with her shirt and was immediately soaked inside. 

                   But that wasn't all; a small pool of blood lurched forward and sloshed all over her wrinkled clothes and hands. Kagome jumped away from the touch, and the sudden shift in weight resulted in the chair toppling; she fell to the floor with a heavy thud. 

                   "Oh my God…" she whispered, struggling to sit upright. The pain in her hips was dulling already, but she wasn't stunned by the fall. "What was that?"

                   Kagome reached behind to touch her pained back, and the feel of another cold liquid washed over her. She ceased all movement and sat there, not moving.

                   Only soft, irregular breathing came from that room. 

                   Finally, Kagome was brave enough to pull forth her hand and see it, although she had an idea of what was on her hand. It was splattered with blood and drying swiftly. She used her clean left hand to feel around her back and found a dry, rough surface in a lower section whereas the rest was smooth and soft.  

                   **_It must be where my right hand touched._**                 

                   She dared to look at her refrigerator again, and found that instead of one little trickle, there was several more, flowing rapidly down the smooth path. Some were flowing fast while other trails were taking their time getting to the bottom of the steel refrigerator door. 

                   Kagome shuffled away cautiously; she didn't want to be seen. Her breathing suddenly didn't come out in sharp intakes; they became shallow, raspy gasps. She continued to skirt away quietly, not wanting to disturb. 

                   Suddenly, she stopped moving away and stared upwards, where the pool of blood came from.

                   **_If the blood is coming from up there, then could there really be…?_**

                   She climbed to her feet shakily and grabbed the fallen chair. She was afraid, terrified of what she would see up there. Forcing herself, Kagome climbed up again.

                   **_I don't want to see any of it. Anything to make it stop, anything…._**

                   Once standing on the chair, she watched the blood drop to the floor with its rhythmic timing, never stopping once, for a little bit. She also noticed how there was a little pool of blood that formed on top of the refrigerator.

                   **_As if I needed to see more…._**

                   And a little drip fell onto that pool. She glanced up to where it came from and inhaled sharply. It was a kitchen cabinet, one of the cabinets that the murderer didn't use to fill with stuff.

                   **_He had something to do with this… he had something to do with all this blood._**

                   Kagome stared at the closed cabinet for five minutes. There was something in that cupboard, and she didn't want to find out. But the blood kept dripping… every few seconds, a new drip was formed. 

                   **_Even though it could be another part…._**

                   Bracing herself, she reached out and opened the cabinet. 

                   And out it certainly came. The cupboard was filled with blood, and only blood. It raced eagerly down to the miniscule pool and increased its size tremendously. What Kagome had thought was a fast-paced trail of blood was not even worth comparing to right now. Suddenly, it seemed as if all the streaks were running down the refrigerator.

                   Blood was on her, too. The minute she opened the cupboard, the whole gallon splashed everywhere, including her. Fat droplets landed on her blouse and soaked right through. Just the barest of contact with this animalistic fluid raised goosebumps all over her body. Strangely enough, she stood there, just looking at how much blood the blouse was going to consume. 

                   Kagome suddenly snapped out of her stupor and saw the blood on her for the first time. She cried out once from shock and looked back at the cabinet to see where it was all coming from.

                   Nothing.

                   **_Oh no… it's happening again…._**

                   Stumbling down from her chair, she ran out of the room, nearly falling when her heels splashed on it. Luckily, she grabbed the table for support. Once out of the kitchen, Kagome bolted outside the apartment. She slammed the door and leaned against it, breathing heavily.

                   **_Who was doing this?_**

                   She had no idea what to do, but she knew that she wasn't going to reenter her apartment without someone accompanying her.

                   **_I'll get Mrs. Takadomo._**

                   Kagome shot down the stairs, her right hand grasping the railing for support and leaving bloody handprints along the way. By the time she reached Mrs. Takadomo's room, she was clutching her side painfully. 

                   The elder lady opened the door; she had heard the clamber down the stairs. When she saw who it was, her face lost its irritation, and another fake, placid one took its place. "Hello, Kagome. What can I do for you?"

                   "My apartment… it's… blood…."

                   "What?" 

                   Kagome took another moment to regain her breath before saying nervously, "My apartment… it has blood everywhere."

                   "What are you talking about?" Mrs. Takadomo demanded, her voice losing its politeness. "What blood?"

                   "They're all over inside my kitchen and on my hand!" Kagome also lost her patience and thrust her right hand in Mrs. Takadomo's face. 

                   It was just a normal, every-day looking hand, nothing really worth staring at. Her face contorted into obvious confusion while Mrs. Takadomo just stared at her with a raised eyebrow. She looked down on her clothes and found that they were stainless, also.

                   "I don't know what happened to the blood on my hands or on my clothes, but come to my apartment; it was drenched."

                   "Really? There's blood in your kitchen?" she said with a hint of disbelief in her voice.

                   "Yes!"

                   "OK, we'll go check out your apartment. If I find that you're lying, then you'll have to stop annoying me with these claims of yours."

                   Kagome nodded confidently, agreeing to the terms. She had seen the blood and nothing could have happened to it in five minutes.

                   Mrs. Takadomo and she climbed up the stairs slowly. The railings had lost their handprints. As they reached the fifth and final floor, Kagome opened the door and walked triumphantly into the kitchen. "Look at all…."

                   No sign of silvery red blood. It was spotless, just as she saw when she first walked in here. "Where is the blood?" Mrs. Takadomo asked evenly.

                   "It was here, right around the refrigerator area!" Kagome replied, voice getting an octave higher. The refrigerator was stainless steel again, and no spot or mark remained. No blood on the floor, where she tripped last time. She even saw her reflection on the fridge's door.

                   Kagome checked her heels on her shoes; they held nothing, except for a few bits of dirt here and there. 

                   **_I just saw it everywhere!_**

                   "I don't get it… there was blood everywhere," she explained lamely. Even she couldn't understand it.

                   Frantically, she scrambled on top of the chair and opened the cabinet again. No blood came out. She looked on top of the refrigerator, looking for the pool that had nearly consumed the entirety of the fridge. No blood was there. The floor itself was clean and speck-free.

                   "See? There wasn't any in the first place. It's all in your imagination."

                   **_Yeah, I have that vivid of an imagination._**

                   "No… there was blood here, all over the floor, just like last time with the limbs!" she argued back, beginning to lose her voice from raising it too much.

                   This time, she had her landlord's attention. "What do you mean by, 'just like last time with the limbs'?"

                   Kagome whipped her head around to face Mrs. Takadomo, momentarily forgetting her search. "What?" she cried, "You mean you didn't see the arms and legs and the girl's head all over the floor when I was knocked out with a bat?"

                   "I didn't see any because there weren't any."

                   "I'm not lying! There were limbs all over the place before I became unconscious!"

                   "None of it was in there when I came," she said in a tone that signaled that it was the end of the argument. "Now remember our deal; you don't bother me about any of these little lies anymore."

                   As Kagome watched her leave, she couldn't help but have a sinking feeling in her stomach. She felt like crying; no one would believe her story, even though she had seen limbs and blood twice. 

                   She headed for the living room dejectedly. She didn't like how this was going to turn out. 

                   Something was making her back uncomfortable, and Kagome reached behind to scratch it. When she brought out her hand, there was dried blood underneath her fingernails.

                   In the kitchen, a lone, blood smear stained the wall behind the refrigerator.

                                                                                 ~*~*~*~

                   Kagome lay in bed, staring at the ceiling in her room. It was 11 P.M., and she still couldn't sleep. Ever since the blood and limb incidents, she couldn't help but stay awake, in case the murderer decided to come after her. "You will fall into a deep slumber when I say 'go'. Go!" she said out loud and shut her eyes.

                   A few minutes later, she opened her eyes and found herself staring at the same dot for the past two hours.

                   **_Why can't I sleep without having to worry for once?_**

                   Half an hour later, her eyes started to drift close, and she found herself staring at the gateway of Peace… until something small and hard landed on her forehead. 

                   This caused her eyes to snap open, and she saw that more rubble fell on top of her head. Kagome used her hand to wipe off all the debris, saving one. She examined it closer and was startled to realize that it was made from the same thing as the ceiling: granite. A few more granite fell on top of her lying form, and she looked up to see what was wrong with it.

                   **_The ceiling's not gonna fall, is it?_**

                   She cleared her head of that thought; the building was too sturdy for that kind of thing to happen. It would have to take a tornado and two hurricanes to bring down this safety vault. 

                   Kagome went back to inspecting the debris pieces when she heard a loud thump above her. She ignored it, thinking it was one of her other neighbor's cat that escaped. There was another thud, followed by another, and she grew annoyed with the repetitive sound.

                   **_God, what is that cat doing up there?_**

                   The thumping discontinued a few minutes later, and then multiple pattering sounds occurred. It was nerve grating, but Kagome assumed it was the noise of the cat running away. "Jeez, he needs to lighten up on the cat snacks."

                   Eventually, the multiple pattering stopped, too, and she was left with tranquility again. But now, even more debris started to fall.

                   The ceiling started to groan, but this time, it was in one central area, near her head. Kagome became uneasy at the noise; it sounded like the ceiling was trying to suppress something from falling, from being shown to her. 

                   **_What's-_**

                   Before she could finish her thought, the ceiling gave in and the weak area above her head broke; she dove out of bed and onto the floor just in time as a huge chunk of granite fell mercilessly onto her pillow… right where her head would have been. And following suit came two more heavy granite, each behind the other so they formed a column directly above her bed. The bed itself couldn't withstand the heavy weight, so it collapsed.

                   Dust was created, and Kagome coughed while making her way to the window. She opened it, sucking in the warm, nighttime air.

                   **_Cool… a full moon._**

                   The light seemed to be shining on her and only her tonight. She kept the window open and turned around to inspect the damage.

                   **_It's so pretty when it-_**

                   Again her thoughts were interrupted when she saw the mesmerizing scene upon her. Her face paled to the same extent as the moon's own white, lifeless face, and her breath stopped, even though her heart hammered wildly inside her chest.

                   She had never noticed how when the granite pieces fell, it left three little holes in the ceiling, each roughly equivalent in circumference and area. Slivered between each hole were three ropes and a loop at the end, forming a noose for a head. How she would have loved to hang the crazy person by neck, fingers, and toes. But three other people already occupied them.

                   They swung to and fro in front of the bedroom window. The moonlight shined inside the room and lightened up their minor and major features. Both of their hands and legs were tied with some sort of heavy objects. All of their eyes were glazed, and they hung limp like rag-dolls.

                   The boy in the middle hole was looking directly at Kagome while his noose was slowly turning around. Just above the itchy rope was something protruding through his neck.... When his back faced her, she saw something pointed sticking out of his neck. Blood dripped on the gleaming edges of the object, wetting her blanket with his blood every now and then. His leg was at an odd position, bent in the wrong way, upwards instead of downwards. Long pieces of torn ligaments were shown at the bridge of his knee, swinging in rhythm along with him. 

                   To the right of the boy was an older man, much older. His silver hair, silver due to aging, was ten times magnified through the moon's shine, causing all the rarely black strands to stand even further back into the crowd of silver. Unlike the boy, his noose wasn't turning; rather, it just stayed there silently. He was weighed down like the other two people, but he was positioned strangely. He bore a bullet hole through one cheek and out the other, still bleeding fresh blood. With his mouth hanging open, the metallic blood filed out slowly, sliding out of his mouth and chin and dripping onto the carpeted floor. The moon shone on him, causing his aged, leathery skin to become even whiter than snow. 

                   Kagome only saw the half-lit side of him. Unconsciously, she shifted so she would have a better look at his darkened face… only to discover that he had no other side of him. He had one arm and leg while the others were gone… somewhere. She didn't want to know; her eyes took in his bloodied sagging form, noticing how near the stomach the bones seemed to disappear, having only blobs of flesh there. She saw heavy bleeding near his stomach and cringed slightly; she wasn't over her shock yet.

                   The last person was to the boy's right. She was swinging back and forth like a little child would on a playground swing. Her hands and legs were all there and tied down, and she would've looked alive if the tight noose wasn't around her fragile neck. She twirled gracefully above the ground with all white eyes burning holes into Kagome's head. Her hair told a different story if Kagome believed that she wasn't harmed. The woman's hair was a soft brown, illuminated with subtle streaks of the darkest ebony. Kagome had loved her mother's hair and its beauty; now, it was coated with a deep, rich red coating near the scalp of her hair. In some places, patches of hair were missing. She could see clearly, since she was looking at her mother in the moonlight, that the missing strands were floating calmly around her like little confetti, celebrating, rejoicing in the death of her mother. 

                   As Kagome continued to stare at her, she saw how her mother's rope was tinted a bit darker than Grandpa's or Souta's ropes. 

                   **_They're gone… Kagome, they're gone._**

                   Unwittingly, she began to laugh at the sight… at first, it was a little chuckle. It blossomed into a quiet giggle before transforming into a maniacal laugh. 

                   "Look at Souta hanging!… And… Grandpa, and… Mom… and…" Kagome's laugh had died in the middle of her stated observation, and she began to cry, sinking to the ground. Her shoulders shook up and down as she buried her face into her hands, sobbing. "No… no... noo…."

                   She vaguely remembered a slight tearing sound before a big thump fell in front of her. In time, all three ropes were cut due to the sharp edges of the holes, and the corpses of her once-lived family fell to the ground with a dull thud. 

                   Morning found her on the floor with her arms wrapped around Grandpa, Souta, and her mom, crying softly while holding them. 

                                                                                    ~*~*~*~

                   Funerals weren't particularly enjoying for her. She sat on the chair outside the lawn of the graveyard, motionless. She wasn't crying or laughing; she was just there. But inside, her mind and heart constricted into a tight little ball, demanding to be left alone. 

                   She had asked that her family members were to be cremated. Even dead people need to look presentable for their own funeral, and her family hadn't looked public-friendly. Grandpa had been gutted alive, her mom's head was nearly cut off, and Souta had a severely broken leg with scissors pierced through his delicate neck. Kagome watched as the three jars were lowered into the ground and buried with dirt. She didn't seem to notice that all of her relatives and friends had attended the funeral.

                   **_Byes._**

                   It sounded cruel and flat, but it was blunt. A soft meow reached her ears, and she felt a soft thing rub against her ankle.

                   "Hey, Buyo," Kagome said, face softening at the cat. This one really did have nine lives.

                   "You were hung, and you survived. Amazing…."

                   She picked him up by the collar and brought him close to the graves. Behind them, people left the funeral quietly one by one until they were all alone.

                   Kneeling in front of the graves, she whispered, "See our family? This one's for Grandpa. He was the person who looked after our home, the shrine, remember?"

                   The response was a meow.

                   "Here's Souta in the middle He plays video games all the time."

                   Another meow.

                   "And this is Mom… yep, the person who fed us and clothes us, I mean, me. Remember?"

                   Kagome brought Buyo close to her for comfort. She was too tired to cry anymore, so she just petted him, gazing at each of the tombs.

                   Behind her, a man flashed her back a little smile, the sun glinting off his pearly teeth. This was going to be even better than coming after the other stupid girl….

                                                                                 ~*~*~*~

                   For some time now, Kagome and Buyo were in this spot. She let her mind wander into whatever she wanted to think. It was just another way of passing by time. Finally, her mind settled onto a certain topic, and her reverie was shattered. Should she do it? Was it a risk?

                   **_What's the risk?_**

                   Suddenly, Kagome let a blank smile play across her face. "C'mon, Buyo. Let's go." 

                   She was going to get out of Tokyo. She had wanted to know the real Tokyo, and she had gotten what she asked for. Kagome didn't like it, and it was plagued with all the little memories taunting her. Besides, it was getting boring.

*

*

A/N: *sigh* I'm TRYING the gore fiction, alright? Can't say I didn't put up effort. I worked all day writing and typing out this fiction, and I thought the ending was pretty good…. My plan here was to creep you out again… or was it to make you sympathize Kagome? I dunno… it could be both. Now, for some reference to the last chapter, the one where I freaked you guys out. That was inspired to a biography I saw on T.V. in fourth grade. It was true-life; some man was inspired by a horror book and decided to kill and hack people to pieces. He was caught, thank you, and electrocuted THREE (3) times. The last time I checked, he wasn't dead…. And the part where the guy shot the girl in the head and all the bloody description, that was due to a scene I saw in the scary realistic movie, The Pledge. Don't watch it if you know you're prone to nightmares. I'm scared to sleep now…. @_@ But I didn't completely use both for the two scenes. I added some of my own descriptions… terrifying, if you ask me. ^_^ 

Next chapter: Certain Impressions

P.S. 4/05/03~ OK, I've redone this chapter because I thought it was a little to fast forward. So now it's there. I redid the whole thing, and I like it better, in my opinion. And I'm not in a good mood, either. My group project for French failed miserably, and now I'm not sure what I have in French anymore. Yes, I may be crazy, but this 13 year old does NOT take it lightly if her grades are below 'A'. If you excuse me, I'm not about to give you a heap of my problems, so I'll just resume writing the next chapter for the story while listening to Moonlight Sonata; pretty damn good song, if you ask me, to write a dark chapter. But the next chapter won't be dark. -_- Either that or Outkast's song Mrs. Jackson. I'll admit that this isn't one of my favorite chapters; heck, I had brain cramps for thinking up of these scenes. I took so much time just to rewrite this. -_-* I liked some of the scenes, but this isn't classified as horror, now would it? :) I think the next chapter is gonna be a bit weird…. And I promise that in Chapter 5 the rest of the characters will make their appearances! And I know I haven't asked, but could you review? *cough*ISOUNDSODESPERATE*cough* It would make my day… because I've had a crappy one, that's for sure. And tell me if this chapter was a lot better than last time. If anyone is confused, tell me in his or her review, and I'll TRY to explain… because sometimes I just confuse people with words. Hehe…. Confused with descriptions anyone? -_-* Please don't make comparisons with chapter 2, either. If I wanted all the chapters to be the same, it would've been done since chapter 1 and it would be quite boring. I'm trying to experiment; so if you review, you have to review based on the chapter's content, not chapter 3 vs. chapter 2. OK?


	4. Chapter 4 Pt 1 Certain Impressions

                                                                                                         Blood-Stained

A/N: *yawns* Sorry… currently, while I'm writing this, I'm pooped out. I need sleep… -_-zzz I've decided slow is good… weekly, good chapters are better than fast, crappy chapters, right? (I would insert smiley here, but I AM tired….) Please don't expect blood waterfalls everywhere. Without further delay, Chapter 4. *crawls into bed*

P.S. *looks alive briefly* For people who asked, Inuyasha, Sango, etc. will enter Chapter 5! (Well, it's mostly Inuyasha people are waiting for. ^_~) But it's not directly AFTER this chapter because this is only the first part of Chapter 4. I'm splitting this up because I don't want you guys to wait that long. Man, I'm still waiting for one of my favorite authors to update her story! (It isn't gonna happen in a long time, is it?) Yep… I should have the second part out around Monday or Tuesday, hopefully. And as to make up for the long wait for this chapter, I will probably post Chapter 5 around Saturday EVENING. Sounds good? OK! *falls asleep on desk* 

Do the Kirby!!! "(^_^)" "(^_^)" *cough*LACKOFSLEEP*cough*

                                                                      Chapter 4 Pt. 1~ Certain Impressions

         Just like that, she left. One day, she inhabited a comfy-sized apartment a few hundred yards from her work office, and the following morning, it was deserted.

         Well, it wasn't bare from corner to corner; actually, it was filled with all her stuff and knickknacks, like umbrellas and assorted shoes. In the kitchen, there were still dinner plates from last night in the sink. The bed itself was rumpled, almost like she woke up minutes before, which probably was true.

         The only think missing was Kagome and her cat, Buyo, themselves. On closer inspection, her toothbrush, and cell phone weren't there, either.

         It was five in the morning, and her car was missing in its usual parking space.

         She was currently riding in it on the outskirts of Tokyo. Her little possessions were scattered in the backseat, and Buyo lazily swished his tail back and forth, back and forth. Up on the dashboard, her quarter's worth of a Pooh bobbing head furiously shook in rhythm to the constant potholes layered out on the street.

         Kagome had no idea where to go.

         **_I should've brought a road map._**

         She cursed as politely as she could inside her head. Her eyes were trained to look on the road, but she had enough experience to be able to daydream and drive simultaneously.

         **_Oh poop… I don't even know where I'm going._**

         The farthest Kagome had planned on going was to get out of the city's limits. After that, it was… somewhere.

         Rounding a curve, she continued pondering where she should go from that point. She decided the best course of action was to wander, wander, and wander some more. Truth be told, she didn't care where she was going to end up, as long as she wasn't there to hurt anyone, even herself.

                                                                           ~*~*~*~

         It had been more than two hours since the two were traveling; they were going forward, with a turn now and then. Kagome liked this activity; it was calm and peaceful. Nothing could harm her or her family (Well, family pet). She was safe in this little metal pod with no major worries.

         She drove onwards, just enjoying the immense change in the scenery.

         **_Wow… there's actually real stuff growing here!_**

         Kagome had always known the Japan was a big manufacturer in electronics and automobiles; the country was trying to revolutionize itself. Not that it wasn't bad (She had a more reliable working engine!), but it was very rare to see farmers anymore

         **_The only farmers I could think of are the ones who grow T.V.'s in their little factories._**

         The once gray, lifeless skyscrapers that adorned her view of the beautiful day and nighttime sky were now replaced with tall, green cornstalks. The road was no longer filled with potholes and traffic; it was a smooth, neat street. The air here seemed to have a fresher quality than the musty one she used to inhale through her respiratory system. Occasionally, a small house would pop up from either side of her, signaling that she was somewhat nearing a town. The houses didn't look run-down like the ones in the alleys or from the old western movies; they were small and quaint.

         **_God, this sucks… running away._**

         Kagome had never been the type to run away if something bad or humiliating happened. But this time, it was under special circumstances. This time, a guy was after her, weapons and all. She wasn't about to go and do something as stupid as put her life at risk just to stand up to the man. He killed people, and he was dead serious about it.

         Was she a coward, then?

         For a few minutes, she drove along while weighing out the evidence to why she wasn't cowardly or not. 

         **_On one hand, running away never usually solves anything. But on the other, no one believes me, so what could I have done?_**

         The battle may have only lasted for no more than six minutes, but the effect of it wore her out terribly. All of a sudden, it seemed as if keeping her eyes open or being wary in the first place was too much work. She slowly pulled over to the right and shut off the car.

         She rested her head against the driving wheel; Kagome was evidently tired. She had been driving for a while, and only had two hours of sleep. Slowly, her eyes drooped, and she fell asleep, muttering about the insignificance of having a guy chase after her.

         As her eyes closed, the colors of her eyesight swirled and mixed, creating grayness everywhere. Eventually, the outlines of the objects did the same. She dimly saw a few of the cornstalks rustle, but it could've been her imagination. Or a raccoon. Her mind became a bit too lethargic to fully react to the little movement.

         **_Don't care about it now… I need a little rest…._**

                                                                       ~*~*~*~

         It crackled….

         "Aaah!" Kagome bolted upright, shrieking. "Get it off me, get if off me, get it off me!!!"

         Where was she? What happened to the-

         She sighed in relief as the surroundings became familiar once more. She was inside her car, where she had been obviously sleeping on the horn. Fortunately, she didn't press all of her weight against it; otherwise, it would have started up an off-key tune of the Mexican Fiesta. 

         It seemed like five minutes ago she had just laid her head down to rest. "Maybe I'm more tired than I thought," she mumbled out loud. She glanced over towards Buyo; he was sleeping.

         **_I should've known; all he does is sleep and eat. It would be a miracle if something actually inspired him to lift his paws._**

         Groaning, she ran her car up again. After warming up, she slowly reentered the road. By now, the sun was high in the sky, so she guessed it to be two in the afternoon.

         **_My God, how long have I been asleep? It's so normal for me to not sleep in my bed, but in the middle of a deserted road._**

         It had been five minutes, and she was already down her way towards dreamland. She kept her eyes peeled for anything sharp or breathing lying in her path. 

         Something orange was flying on top of the cornstalks.

         Immediately, she panicked and pressed the gas pedal down. As she sped past the reddish orange thing, she saw that it was just a scarecrow in a flaming shirt. 

         **_OK, breathe. It wasn't anything._**

         Kagome knew she was being really paranoid, but she couldn't help it. It wasn't so much as the shirt that scared her, but it was more of the color. OK, so she had the right to blow the stupid situation out of proportion; she did just wake up, after all, and her senses were more or less ready to explode. But something else was bothering her.

         It was somewhere in her brain, something that made her freak out before the fiery color. The reddish orange shirt had clicked something in her mind, but she couldn't remember what had happened that had caused her to have some nervous attack against the color. 

         Kagome shrugged it off, thinking that she was probably too sharp for her own good at that moment. So she decided to concentrate on other things, like the scenery again. It was still filled with one too many cornstalks. 

         **_Someone needs to pick the corn or grow a different vegetable._**

         "Seriously, haven't these people heard of carrots, pumpkins, peas, tomatoes, or…" she trailed off as another thought came into mind.

         **_Something was after me._**

         The statement wasn't the brightest thing that came into her mind. She already knew some homicidal killer was after her, so why did it feel different when she thought about it this time? 

         And it came to her. 

         It was her dream, or preferably, nightmare. 

         **_Who was it? I think it was a man. He was supposedly powerful, right? Probably._**

         Involuntarily, she shivered. This was something she had to look out for; her dreams either meant two things: paranoia or premonition. Unfortunately, it was leaning towards the second choice.

         Kagome confirmed the fact the thing after her was a person; she didn't exactly know what gender the person was, but she would assume it to be male for now. The person's features, she didn't see. He was wearing all black, but he had green eyes. Yes, she was definite he had green eyes….

         He was able to produce fire in his hands, a feat Kagome had only seen in bad action movies. She didn't know why she was thinking of a probable pyromaniac, but it was true. The fireball simply… appeared in his little hands, swirling blue. The other weird ability she perceived from him was his capability to shapeshift. Kagome didn't know how she knew, but he was able to change into something else. To what she didn't know, but the man didn't appear to be one in his original body form. 

         **_It's so confusing…._**

         In the dream segment, the male had put her on fire, like at a witch burning. But it wasn't the type where he lighted her with a match and gasoline. No… he had conjured up red, fire sparks, just plain fire sparks. They flew towards her, hitting her harshly across the face and body. The sparks danced across her nude arms, burning away her pale, tender skin and leaving the red flesh beneath it. Where the sparks touched, it ignited a brief flash of pain that shot through the whole length of her arms before numbing. Kagome couldn't escape or try to protect herself; other... things held her down. She'd bet anything they were helpers of the male.

         Kagome had looked down at where the flames touched her arms, and she saw them. They were bleeding, of course.  But it wasn't much, just a few drips here and there. The sparks had already devoured some of her skin, letting the sensitive layer of flesh become exposed to the world. When Kagome believed the wound couldn't become even more serious than it was, she was defied for the second time. Another set of sparks came towards her again, this time, a bit bigger and even hotter than before. Her cut lips were now bleeding a bit more heavily, and her right eye was blinded temporarily. The sparks effectively burned her, and some of her skin had actually come off in thin, transparent pieces due to the height of the temperature.

         This had marked the beginning.

         **_What… beginning?_**

         The male had taken out a little pocketknife and opened it. The short but sharp blade gleamed from an unexplainable light. Kagome had trouble identifying the cause of the glow; it was just there. In fact, she didn't really know where she was. It was all a blur, and the only thing she was focused on was the weapon he held in her hand.

         A dull ache pounded on her stomach for a bit, but that was enough to relate that to her dream.

         **_He slashed me… across the stomach._**

         It was a short but deep gash. For a moment, she didn't feel anything, but then the recurring pain slowly spread throughout her abdomen. Blood filed out and gently swept past her skin. It stained her skirt, causing the color to become a darker red… like her mother's rope. 

         His hands reached out to touch her chin, and she remembered it. It was hard and calloused, like someone who had been working endlessly in the sun for many summers. He lifted her chin carefully so that she would meet his face. 

         Even in her subconscious, Kagome didn't like the man. She had shrugged his hands of and refused to meet his eyes. Of course, he had become impatient and jerked her face towards him again. He was speaking something, but she didn't pay attention. She was too busy double taking from her stomach pain.

         The man had lifted her chin and held it there, making her throat vulnerable. He brought the knife slowly up to her chin and….

         She didn't go any further.

         The whole time, Kagome had been gripping the wheel tighter and tighter as the events went along. When she reached the end, she couldn't take it anymore. She managed to wrench one of her pale, clammy hands away from the wheel and placed it across her abdomen. Moving her hand around, Kagome searched for any blood or scars. 

         There weren't any cuts.

         She also did the same for her throat, feeling around for some hole. There weren't any, fortunately. She didn't want to end up like Souta.

         It really was just a dream!

         **_It's so hard to distinguish from fantasy to reality now._**

         Kagome discovered that the rest of the dream was lost to her, and the little section was all she could remember. "Well, that was good. Premonitions are supposed to be visions and should be fully recalled."

         Somehow, she doubted that, but she forced herself to believe. Faith was what she needed to trust in. Yeah, faith sounded good.

         Either that or she was being particularly naïve today.

         She kept replaying the scene over and over again while driving along the road. After all, it wasn't like she was going to stop until….

         Her car halted unexpectedly in the middle of the path. Kagome would've been sent hurtling forward, but she was wearing a seatbelt, her lifesaver. She could only stare dumbly at the situation before it dawned on her what had happened.

         "What? No!" Kagome cried angrily. If only she had refueled this morning….

         She banged her head against the wheel as a way of cursing for her stupidity, but it was a little too hard.

         And the Mexican Fiesta started up.

         "Thank you," she whispered, looking up towards the sky, "thank you so much."

         In response, it started to drizzle lightly. It came upon earth like a little shower spray, but increased in speed and volume.

         "How lovely…."

                                                                   ~*~*~*~

         Kagome leaned against the chair, tired. The aftermath of the rain was mud everywhere, and she wasn't about to go and dirty her only set of clothes. "I need to make a checklist before I do something spontaneous ever again."

         So she decided to camp in her semi-dead car that night. Looking around, Kagome saw cornstalks, and only cornstalks.

         **_God, I wish I were in a suburb now._**

         She looked around her car, fingering the Styrofoam on the edge of her chair while deep in blank thoughts. Was she becoming claustrophobic? Did she still like sushi? Was she ever going to make it out of the countryside without going crazy? Was she-

         Another piece of the dream came to her suddenly, and she reminded herself to keep occupied whenever she wanted to remember something.

         **_The man was crying._**

         It wasn't a big weep festival or anything like that; his green eyes spilled tears continuously down his face, even though his mouth wasn't turned downwards. It occurred to her before he had stuck the knife through her throat that he was saying something. 

         **_Maybe this might be important. But… what did he say?_**

         Kagome strived to remember his words. "What was it?"

         She tried to make up an image of the man's moving lips, and succeeded. However, his voice was silent, like the game Charade. It took some time, but she was finally able to lip read what he was mouthing.

         _"I'm sorry… please, I'm sorry."_

         Her eyes widened, and she stopped her useless pulling the stuffing out of the chair. "He said sorry?"

         That couldn't be right; Kagome shook her head and tried to concentrate again. Sometimes, her mind teased her and made her see things when, in fact, something else happened.

         She closed her eyes and focused on his lips and tried to see if he had said something else; they didn't. He still said the suspected words. 

         **_Why would he say 'sorry'?_**

         But it was true. She had heard it inside her mind and dream; his lips moved in sync to those confusing words.

         The man was killing her, crying, and apologizing at the same time.

         And Kagome was the victim of all three.

         Was she going to have fun sleeping for the rest of the night.

                                                                       ~*~*~*~

         The next morning, she stumbled out of her car wearily and blinked a few couple of times. It was much brighter here than in Tokyo, too. She needed a break from the cramped seat in her car.

         "Downside to rural life: too sunny and cheerful," she grumbled while observing a few couple of twittering birds.

         Kagome left Buyo in the car; he was too heavy for her to carry, and it would be more of a workout for her than it already was. She headed for the nearest town, which was a mile away.

         Yep, a tired, cranky person was fun to talk to in the morning. She trudged through mud and puddles, hoping for a gas station in sight, too.

         Nine minutes later, Kagome reached her destination with hunger claiming her stomach, fatigue over her legs, and cramps dominating her sides. "Now I know why I haven't exercised in three years."

         The town was a decent one, filled with the normal stores you would need in your everyday life, like a post office, gas station, and McDonald's. 

         She didn't take notice of what type of people lived here or how the houses looked; she was too busy looking for the mechanic.

         Spotting a gas station, she hobbled over to the entrance. "H-hello?" she called out. "Anyone here? I need some assistance."

         "Ring the bell!" a voice answered from nowhere.

         Kagome was startled by the statement, but quickly regained her wired senses. 

         **_Probably one of those speakers on the ceiling._**

         Shrugging, she walked over to the counter and spotted the gold bell, lying there harmlessly. Kagome pressed it, thinking the mechanic would pop out from behind the door. What happened next she wouldn't forget.

         The bell surrounded itself with a puff of smoke for a brief second before clearing. In its place was a little boy, smiling proudly with fangs. "Welcome to-Ow! Hey!"

         Kagome had immediately backed up towards the can section when the smoke appeared and covered the top of the counter. Curling her hands around a particular one, she waited until the smoke disappeared. A little boy, maybe four, was standing in a prideful stance. His hair was tied up with a ribbon, and his tail swooshed back and forth. His TAIL was MOVING.

         **_Oh my God!_**

         Wasting no time, she hurled the can in his direction. A few more followed quickly. "Who are you? No… what are you? Is this some kind of fad I don't know about? How'd you do that?"

         "I'd answer you if you stopped throwing fruits at me!" the boy squeaked while narrowly escaping canned raspberries. He didn't like raspberries very much.

         The boy's answer did the trick, but before he could relax, another one hit his head. "That really hurts!" he piped up, rubbing his head while tears started to form in his eyes.

         "That's for scaring me to death," Kagome clarified her reason for throwing that last can. "Now, can you answer my questions?"

         The boy just 'hmmph'ed and said with definite lack of enthusiasm, "Welcome to the gas station. I'm Shippo, the secretary. What can I do for you?"

         Kagome blinked a few times at 'Shippo' before starting to laugh. 

         "What's so funny?" he asked, eyes blazing with confusion.

         "Yeah, right. You can't be a secretary…. You're just a little boy who dresses up like a… something animal with an electronic tail!" she finished while laughing.

         Shippo just pouted. This person was one of those nonbelievers.

         Another person, a male, came out from the door behind him. He heard some sort of racket and was hoping that Shippo hadn't stapled himself onto the dartboard like last time. He saw Shippo glaring at a young human woman, who was banging on the counter with her curled fists.

         "Excuse me, miss, but what can we do for you?" the man asked politely while trying not to direct all of her attention on him.

         Kagome, who was still laughing at the boy's outrageous claim, looked up to see who was speaking to her. She paled immediately as she saw the male was an older, much older version of Shippo. "Oh God!" she shrieked and reverted back to throwing cans. These people were freaks, wearing costumes!

         "Ow-duck!" was all the man could say before a heap of beans piled on top of him. The poor boy didn't have a chance as he soon found himself in that same position, too.

         "What's going on?"

         Kagome, panting, turned around to find a woman with pointed ears and dark-blue eyes staring at her. Oh yeah, and she had horns on her head. 

         **_Tell me I'm dreaming… tell me this is just some very realistic-looking costume, and the woman doesn't have horns on her head like a rhinoceros._**

         "You… you…" she couldn't form the sentence as she suddenly felt dizzy. All Kagome did was stare and point shakily at the woman's head.

         **_This town is nuts._**

         "I what?" the horn woman demanded, putting a hand on her hips.

         Her answer was a Kagome on the floor.

         "Freak," she muttered while preparing to call the hospital.

                                                                 ~*~*~*~

         "Hey… hey… hey!"

         Kagome felt someone shake her violently. Her facial features pulled into a frown; didn't the man know that this kind of abuse could result in a massive headache for up to two days? She kept her eyes closed; maybe if she did this, then he would leave her alone.

         That only made the person shake harder. Annoyed, she opened her eyes, prepared to launch a merciless chiding… and stared into the most beautiful, yellow eyes she had ever seen in her life. "Are you OK?" the person asked roughly. "You were in one hell of a fall a few hours ago."

         There was no response, just more staring.

         "I know you didn't become mute just because you fainted."

         Kagome was still transfixed on his eyes, and it was unnerving on him. Shortly, he snapped. "Don't stare; it's rude."

         Flustered, she transferred her gaze elsewhere. "Sorry," she mumbled, "you just have weird eye color."

         "Thanks for the compliment," the doctor snapped yet again. He didn't like blunt people, and she just happened to be one of those types.

         It took a few strained seconds, but the doctor finally cooled down before speaking again. "I'm Dr. Hiro, the only doctor in this whole town. I'm going to watch over you."

         "… Cool," Kagome mumbled quietly. She dared to look at him again, this time, at the rest of his physical features, and nearly fell out of her bed.

         His hair was short, almost shaved, and his ears were normal. He would've passed for a human, except there was just one, teensy, little detail. His arms sported several hundred needles protruding into his skin. The other half was stuck in the open. The worst part? It looked real. It probably was, since he wasn't dying on her floor from blood loss. 

         This time, the Dr. Hiro pretty much caught her staring fearfully at his arms, and he grew annoyed. "What? Haven't you seen a porcupine youkai once or twice in your life?"

         **_Y-youkai?_**

         Kagome voiced her thoughts out loud. "Y-youkai? There aren't any demons! They don't exist in the first place!"

         "Yes, they do!"

         "No, they don't!"

         "Yes, they do!"

         "No, they don't!"

         "Then what do you call these on my arms, huh? Explain that, Ms. Smarty-Pants!"

         "You overdid it with the acupuncture!"

         "That's a stupid excuse, and you know it. Besides, demons do too exist."

         "How come I've never seen one before?"

         Dr. Hiro did not like this newcomer. "How come? You're stupider than you let on, you know that?"

         "Hey!"

         "First of all, not every city has youkai. You are probably from one of those cities. Second of all, we youkai live in towns and rural areas, not cities or suburbs. You probably never went as far past as the city's limits, because if you did, you would've seen more of this type of town!"

         By that time, he was breathing fire… literally. Kagome glanced at the little flare, and she shrunk back from the sudden increase in temperature of the room.

         **_Porcupines don't breathe out fire… porcupines don't breathe out fire._**

         "Alright, alright! You win, there are youkai…. I get your point, so could we stop the nostril flaming?" she called out timidly. She even waved a little of her white blanket in the air to show that she surrendered.

         Dr. Hiro calmed down considerably, but he left the room with charcoal smoke trailing out of his nose, muttering, "Stupid people…."

         **_Note to self: Don't make porcupines mad._**

                                                                            ~*~*~*~

         Kagome stayed in the hospital for two nights, and it totaled to 90,000 yens. "That's bogus… 90,000 yens… cheap hospital," she muttered.

         Since she couldn't give the money from her pocket directly, she decided to use the bank.

         There were some advantages to living in a small place. For one thing, the bank was next to the hospital and not on the other side of the planet.

         Stepping inside the small, cool building warily, Kagome searched for an ATM machine. She was having trouble accepting the fact that demons existed, and she didn't need to meet one face to face at this troubled time in her life.

         **_How come I've never seen any youkai in Tokyo? I mean, sure, they prefer to live in rural areas and towns, but there's bound to be at least one who wanted the wild life._**

         Frowning, she absently pushed in her account number on the screen and waited for that instant cash to come out.

         It didn't come.

         Instead, the screen flickered for several seconds, going on and off, on and off.

         Kagome was in deep thoughts, just wondering about youkai and others. After a while, she grew tired of waiting. She snapped out of her daze and diverted her attention to the frozen ATM. "Junk… c'mon, work!"

         She looked around to see if any stingy person or youkai was around before giving the metal a 'little' kick.

         **_I…hate…ATM's…._ **

         The screen suddenly stopped its blinking, and the money fell out. But the message was a bit different than the other times she had used the machine.

         **HE'LL GET YOU. :)**

*

*

A/N: OK, right now, it Sunday morning, 12:08 A.M. If this sounds bad to you, I'm sorry. But please give me Sunday to reread it and see if it needs working on. I decided that maybe a little rest from blood would be nice, right? I mean, really…. And if the dream didn't make you feel scared, it's all right. It wasn't meant to. It was a dream. But if you want, I'll add more detail, OK? ^_^ I'm really sorry for having to cut this chapter in half. I wanted to do it as one long one, but I wasn't sure if ff.net would cut it off or not. So the next half of Chapter 4 will be up by Monday, I hope. I will hopefully finish the rest of the chapter by tomorrow. And if my cousin lets me, I will steal her laptop and type up the chapter…. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA*cough*HAHAHAHAHA*hack* OK, someone needs to go to sleep now…. I really need to sleep.

Next Chapter: Pt. 2 Certain Impressions

4/14/03~ Man, you just gotta love them rewrites! ^_^ I love rewriting my stories; weird enough, it's fun. Right now, it's 8:25 A.M., and I'm in a car, typing on my brother's laptop. Like I said before, I'm going on to visit my cousins up in the North; it's a 600 mile trip in the CAR for a WHOLE day with my parents and LITTLE siblings. @_@ Oh, how life is cruel to me….  
  
Anyways, before the damn battery runs out, I'd better make this quick. It stinks in this car, and I think I'm going to faint from a headache. Owww…. I hope you liked the rewritten chapter; I know I had FUN writing it. Hehe…. Ooh… the car door is open… what a draft it is…. "(._.)" I have to go now. I'll try to post the rest of Chapter 4 by Wednesday or Friday. I guess Chapter 5 (When Inuyasha comes in. ^_^) will have to wait next week. Sorry!


	5. Chapter 4 Pt 2 Certain Impressions

                                                                                                         Blood-Stained

A/N: OK, just for good measure, remember how I said I couldn't update often? Well, I was telling the truth… unfortunately. *sigh* This sucks, you know that? Sometimes, in algebra class, I just want to whip out the notebook and the pencil and start writing… but that would be rude, since I'm supposed to be learning about polynomials and complete factoring. _ Blech! Trust me, this ain't a pretty sight. AND (Yes, people, even MORE news.), I have a set of tests, called SOLS, and they're coming up. Now, listen carefully to this little piece of information. These TESTS are important; these are my tickets to 9th grade… if I don't pass… we won't go there. So please don't hurt me if I don't get out Chapter 5 (INUYASHA COMING THROUGH!!!) some time within a two or three week span; I'm so sorry! 

P.S. Hey! I reached over 50 reviews! (I saw 400 a minute ago. -_-* I wish.) *smiles happily* My goal for this story by the time I get to the seventh or eighth chapter is 100 reviews. *evil glint* Will you help me? Oh, and thanks to the following people for reviewing my A/N… not that you had to or anything, but I'm grateful they gave me their feedback (=)):

**Kitten Kisses:** Thanks for supporting me! I'm really glad you see my beliefs, which I've held for like how long now, since third grade? And I'm so sorry, but I didn't mean to rub it in your face about the whole straight 'A' thing. *looks shameful* But hey, good job on the A's in English! *high fives… well, virtual high fives* I mean, I'm good in the grammar part and all, and I'm doing pretty well in the composition part. (My teacher is very picky. -_-*) But when it comes to literature… ugh, don't ask. I've been doing horrible. 

**Silver Dragon:** *looks tired* Yes, all that schoolwork keeps piling up, no matter how hard I finish the swimming pool-sized papers. They just keep coming and coming and coming and coming…. @_@ I'm really sorry if I disappointed you in time. *sigh* I was never good with time… I'm more of the type that will need one year to give you two mind-blowing chapters consecutively. That's like what, six months per chapter? Hmm…. *sees Silver Dragon with a chair* OK! OK! I won't have to make them mind-blowing… I'll settle for great, alright? And as for this being romance…. Um… well, you see…. *fidgets* I can't really write romance. *BONK* Ouch, that hurts. Now, don't expect too much fluff, OK? You'll see bits and pieces of it during the entire course of the fiction, but I promise, you'll be HAPPY in the end. 

**Christykay:** o_0 You haven't gone crazy or anything. Anyways, thanks for your opinion on my Naraku/Kikyo analogy! Hehe… I really don't think Naraku has any redeeming qualities, whereas Kikyo… um… what ARE her redeeming qualities? ^_^ But still, Naraku gives off that creepy vibe that he's 100% evil while she is 100% dead. I think there's some sort of LINE between the two. And thanks for the preaching… yeah, it seems as if this year was trying to get me to loosen up and party… well, read…. ^_^() I'm trying to concentrate again… but I dunno… which looks more tempting to you, polynomials and factoring or a romance story? (LMAO… I can easily choose…. -_-*)

**Erin:** You are my 50th reviewer!!! THANK YOU FOR BEING MY 50th REVIEWER IN 3 ½ CHAPTERS! I WANT TO THANK YOU; THANKS SOOOOO MUCH! ^_^ It made my HW-filled day much brighter! Thank you for dubbing my story original! Hehe… I was going for that, you know…. Yeah, I like romance done right with some action in it. You want me to tell you some good stories? Well… if I tell you that, then that means I'll have an even less self-esteem than what I already have. *grumble* My favorite stories are way out of my writing and thinking ability. But anyways, enough self-destruction of the ego. Hmm…. Well, I have to say that my favorite story by Snowgirl would have to be _The Life of an Assassin._ I think it's spelled like that. Another author is Rosefire. Let me tell you this; you have NOT read romance unless you've read hers. I'm telling you, if you're looking for the best romance, she can write. My favorite story out of all the ones she wrote would definitely be _Father Figure._ And remember: please keep reading my story!!! *gets down on knees and grovels* ^_~ I hope I get picked as Creepiest Writer of the Year! (CWY) Hehe… J/K!

P.P.S. I want to also advertise someone; she's my cousin, and her penname on ff.net is wingweaver2003. She is writing a few stories called: Troubles with Love, Love's Struggle, and Love is in the Air. Go read if you're interested, but I'm warning you: Ignore any major grammatical mistakes. ^_^ She did the same for me, but she forgot my penname and story. -_-* God, where can you expect decent advertising? ^_~

                                              Chapter 4 Pt. 2~ Certain Impressions

          The screen only showed only showed the message briefly, five seconds at most. But five seconds was more than enough for her to read the sentence.

          Her face was frozen in a mask composed of a slightly gaping mouth and wide, disbelieving eyes. She clenched her teeth together and held her breath.

          **_How?_**

          The message froze again for a few seconds before the words and smiling face at the end slowly distorted, creating a mess of white and yellow blobs against the black background. 

          It flickered once more for good measures, and the mess disappeared in front of her eyes.

          **HAVE A NICE DAY.**

          Kagome still stared at the screen for a few more minutes, not totally registering the whole display. By then, a few youkai had formed a line behind her, either waiting patiently or impatiently.

          One of them couldn't take it any longer and decided to speak on behalf of the youkai's minds. "Couldja take any longer?" an elder youkai grumped behind her.

          Kagome tore her gaze away from the screen. "Huh? Oh… um, yeah, I'm done," she mumbled, an indecipherable look on her face.

          She turned around and started to walk past the growing line of youkai, but the one behind her spoke up again. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

          It was the 90,000 yens.

          "…Thanks."

          She went back and quickly grabbed the money before starting to depart. But a sudden idea occurred to her. An idea that could either support or deny her suspicion. 

          Kagome discreetly dropped a yen by 'accident' near the ATM machine. "Oops, clumsy me!" she feigned surprise and toddled over next to it. "Go ahead. I'm just going to find the yen."

          **_Amazing what a few theater classes can't do for you…._**

          The youkai scoffed at Kagome's clumsiness, but went ahead anyways. "What can you do right?"

          She restrained herself from assaulting the rude guy; it wasn't nice to hit elders. Instead, she waited until the soft clink of the yens coming out from the machine sounded before straightening up right away. She glanced casually at the screen to see the message.**__**

****

******HAVE A NICE DAY.**

          Kagome couldn't help but let a little surprise slip over her features. Where was the other message?

          Not bothering to hide the fact that she intended to hover around the ATM for some reason, she observed what happened as each of the youkai withdrew their desired amount of money. The ending, placid message was always the same each time.

          **_OK…._**

          When the last person in line left, Kagome decided to try withdrawing some money again. She definitely saw things, and this was probably one of those times. 

          Standing in front of the machine, she went through the standard procedure, pressing in her account number. When it came time for the amount of yens she wanted, she pushed in a random number: 100.

          Kagome waited for the money to come out instantly like it had done for the past eight youkai. She was also waiting for the good-bye message.

          The screen processed the account number and amount of money for a few minutes. It began to blink several times and froze.

          "This did not happen with the others," she whispered, eyes bulging at the familiar pattern.

          Nervously, she kicked the machine softly, almost a nudge. That was all that was needed; the screen stopped its incessant blinking, and the yens came out. And again, she saw the message on the screen.

          **DON'T RUN; HE WILL GET YOU. :)**

          The extra command worked fine right then; Kagome's grip on the edges of the machine tightened a whole lot more than a normal human could muster, and her legs nearly buckled. This was a sure blow to her false sense of security.

          And to think she finally escaped….

          Within five seconds, the words blurred together.

                                                                        ~*~*~*~

          Kagome paid the hospital the fee and left without a word. Dr. Hiro's eyes nearly fell out of its sockets when he saw the money. "Whoa! I was just kid…"

          "Keep it," she muttered distantly, already reaching the door.

          "Sure, whatever you say," he answered, mentally whistling at the sight of the innumerable yens.

          She exited the building and walked wherever her legs carried her. It was one of those days where everything was annoyingly cheerful and perfect; she did not feel happy and pretty. On contrary, Kagome felt sick and crappy.

         **_What was that about?_**

          She had a distinct feeling that she knew the answer to that mental question, and it scared her that he could be here. He could be the grocery man smiling kindly at her right now… he could be the telephone man fixing the telephone pole right next to her. 

          With paranoia threatening to take over, Kagome stopped walking and darted into the nearest building in hopes of shaking off the nasty feeling that she was being watched. As she entered, a little bell plastered to the door gave off a little ding, signaling to the storeowner that a customer was inside.

          "Ring the bell!"

          A familiar phrase sounded throughout the store, and Kagome looked up with a smile; it was the gas station! During her little sleepover at the hospital, the nurses and doctors allowed patients to roam around town, (It was that small.) just as long as they returned to the hospital every night. And yes, she still thought this particular hospital system was cheap.

          She had visited the gas station during the trial period, since it was the first place she had entered in the town, and it was safe to say that she was a pretty familiarized acquaintance with Shippo and his family.

          "You wouldn't want me to throw cherries at you again, would you?" Kagome called back teasingly. Her problems were momentarily forgotten.

          "Kagome!" the object yelled gleefully, covering itself with smoke; it cleared almost instantly. "Hey!"

          "Why are you so happy to see me?"

          "I'm always happy when you visit the gas station. Besides, it's a really, really, really slow day for business. It's super boring around here."

          She laughed as he pretended to fall asleep. Shippo swooned and fell over the counter, confident that his friend would catch him; however, that wasn't the case, since Kagome was still a bit jumpy and moved out of his falling path, thus letting him end up with a mashed head.

          "… Ow… you were supposed to catch me…."

          "Oops…" she mumbled apologetically, "I thought you would catch yourself before you hit."

          "I'm a fox demon, not Superman."

          Kagome picked up the still bruising child and began rubbing his head gently. "You feeling better?" she asked affectionately after a few seconds passed.

          "Yep…" Shippo murmured drowsily. This was comfortable, no doubt. After a moment, he was jerked awake when Kagome asked the dreaded question.

          "So… is my car fixed?"

          He opened his eyes, and his spirit dampened at the mention of the word 'car'. "Well… um," he began fiddling with his shirt, "I… we… I mean, my dad didn't… er… have time… yeah, time, to go and… um… well, pick up your dead car. Yeah, that's it! He didn't have time to go and pick up your car. So it's really back in the corn field where you left it."

          Kagome noted how proud Shippo was for thinking up of such a silly fib. He wasn't exactly a good liar, either.

          **_But then again, I'm not exactly sly material either._**

          "You little weasel, I know for a fact that your parents came and picked up my car. I mean, my license plate is hanging on the wall! And I don't think it's legal anywhere for a person to steal a plate," she said jovially, pointing to a specific license plate.

          Immediately, he went into defense mode. "Aw… why can't you stay here? Why do you need your car fixed so soon?" Shippo looked up at her with big, irresistible eyes. It was time to use his most powerful weapon: his notorious sympathy act.

          "Because I have to leave town and everything; I have to live somewhere. I can't stay in a hospital forever…. They charge you 90,000 yens for two nights! And besides, I don't think the doctors will agree to unharmed patients using the operation room as a little bedroom."

          "But you can stay here instead of moving away! And you can rent our home as a place to live. And we'll charge you less than 90,000 yens, and it won't be illegal!"

          "What about money? I can't just withdraw from my account every month; I worked my butt off trying to save all those yens."

          "You can get a job in the town. I think McDonald's is hiring."

          "What about clothes? I can't just wear this outfit everyday. That would be really disgusting, you know. And I don't really see a mall or some place where I could buy some new pants and stuff."

          "Oh, don't worry about that. The supermarket sells food, used car parts, and clothes!"

          **_Dang, he knows his way around town…. He's too good at his own game._**

          Shippo could see that she was beginning to teeter towards his side, so he brought out the heavy artillery to push her over the edge; his eyes began to water.

          "Don't cry," she said, more out of reflex, "It's OK, really. I appreciate your offer, but I just can't stay."

          Now he was really starting to sniffle. "But why?" he asked, pouting, "Why can't you stay here? Why do you want to move to Australia or France?"

          **_Australia? France?_**

          "Well, I'm not really going to move to those places, but I have to go because… because I want to," she finished lamely. 

          In truth, Kagome had no idea why she had this sense of urgency that made her want to drive away from this town quickly. Why couldn't she live here? After all, McDonald's could be her next job, and she would have a roof over her head. What was wrong with her staying in this town?

          It was her stupid sixth sense worrying her about a certain feeling that spelled out D-E-M-I-S-E in her head.

          Shippo looked up at her with an accusing finger, "That's really old and not even a good reason. Don't… don't you want to stay near me?"

          Kagome, who was guiltily ignoring him for the past minutes, looked down at him when he asked that question. It was more of his squeaking voice than his question that made her realize that she wasn't the only person in the room. "Actually… I guess… I mean, I could stay here for a few couple of days."

          **_Or months…._**

          Shippo tucked away his accusing finger and gaped at her, stunned. That was too easy, and he knew how she liked to follow her beliefs. "What's the catch?" he asked suspiciously, eyeing her carefully.

          Kagome laughed and answered, "Nothing. I guess you have a point, so why not? I'll try living here for a bit."

          Before she could even finish her reply, he had already jumped off her arms and onto the counter, dancing. "Kagome's staying! Kagome's staying!" he sang happily.

          **_At least someone's excited for me._**

          "What's going on?"

          Both turned around to see Shippo's father coming out from the 'working' room, where he mainly fixed the cars. He actually had a name, but Kagome couldn't pronounce it correctly. "Hello, Mr. Shippo's Dad," she greeted him with a wave.

          Shippo cut in with a rushed, indifferent hello, followed by the groundbreaking announcement. "You don't have to fix her car so soon! She's staying with us in town!"

          "Really?"

          "Yeah!"

          "Well, it was too bad, because I'm almost done with her car."

          "Stop influencing her, Daddy!"

          "I can't help it…. I mean, if she's staying in town, where is she going to find money?"

          "McDonald's."

          "What about where she'll buy her clothes?"

          "Oh, the supermarket sells food, used car parts, and clothes."

          "Where will she sleep and reside when she's not working?"

          "In the gas station."

          "She will?"

          He seemed surprised by that comment. It was very rare for a family to shelter a person they knew in two or three days, but it was even rarer when Shippo exclaimed that he would let his friend sleep inside the gas station. 

          "I mean, is it OK with you?" Kagome asked nervously, "I wouldn't want to interfere or feel like I'm barging into your lives abruptly or anything."

          "Oh no, it's fine. We just have to consult with the wife," he assured her, "Then it's all set, provided you sign the paperwork and such."

          And he toddled off to talk to Mrs. Shippo's Mom. 

          Meanwhile, Kagome was still blinking, astounded at how easily she received a home. "Wow…" she mumbled, "I could get used to this kind of living."

          Shippo, on the other hand, was seemingly gloating over his latest accomplishment.

                                                                      ~*~*~*~

          Kagome had to settle some business before she could apply for the job. The first thing was to talk to Shippo's parents about the rent. After greeting Mrs. Shippo's Mom, who was a small, plump lady with attributes resembling her son and husband, Kagome and she began their paperwork. She ended up signing about 11 different places and agreeing to pay for about one-fourth of the food bill. 

          **_Oh jeez…5000 yens per month…. That's way better than the hospital's amount._**

          When that was done and over with, her next thing on the To-Do List was to buy some new clothes. After Shippo gave her directions to reach the grocery store, she wound up lost. She had to retrace her steps for a half hour before finally reaching the grocery store. She immediately went inside and grabbed two shirts and pants off the rack along with some undergarments before marching to the register to purchase them.

          **_I can't believe I ended up at a cheese store…._**

          For once in her life, Kagome was not willing to shop for new clothes so soon.

          Finally, she was going to apply for the job at McDonald's. It seemed as if it was the only place that was hiring.

          She thought applying for a job at McDonald's would be under 15 minutes. She was in, she was out, BAM! She had a job. She thought the only résumé needed was the ability to ask, "You want fries with that?"

          Turns out that this certain restaurant was a little bit pickier. The manager, Mr. Himiya, had demanded a college education, top manners overall, and superb cleaning skills. She understood why top manners and superb cleaning skills were included in the criteria….

          **_But why college education?!?!_**

          Kagome had no idea why an education was needed (She had seen a 15 year old work as a cook in one of the restaurants before.), but she didn't dare ask. The first rule to winning a job was to never ask; let the boss do the asking, unless it was something important, like going to the bathroom.

          Mr. Himiya had researched her diploma; he used a magnifying glass to look over it for proof that this wasn't some paper she printed out of the computer. He even went to her college site and looked up the graduates' names this year for actual verification. After 20 long, tedious minutes, he was satisfied. 

          The next standard was how to behave. He tested her to see how far he could go to snap her tolerance. Mr. Himiya went from throwing minor insults composed of "You suck at your job" or something similar to that effect to physically throwing McNuggets at her. "You have to be prepared for the worsst of cusstomerss," he said wisely when her face turned a violent shade of red.

          The last benchmark was a test on cleaning skills. This, considered by him, was the greatest factor of all. If Kagome was able to clean decently, then she was in the McDonald's business. This, in fact, was the hardest test to overcome. Mr. Himiya placed her in different types of cleaning situations, such as milkshake accidents to gum on the floor. She wiped counters to declogging toilets, which was the most revolting thing. By the end of the two-hour interview, she carried around with her the permanent stench of Lysol. 

          However, it was worth it, since Kagome received the job. She also formed a deep respect for McDonald's workers.

          Running out of the restaurant and across the street, she barged through the gas station, breathless. "I got the job!" she screamed as loudly as she could. "I got the job, I got the job!"

          Shippo didn't get to hear her screams of joy, however; he was too busy lying on top of the counter, taking a nap. It wasn't until she picked him up and started dancing around the room, yipping incoherently (Well, to him it sounded incoherent.), did he wake from his peaceful sleep. "Huh…? Uurgh… headache… dizzy…."

          "Shippo! I got the job!" Kagome screamed happily again before crushing him into a hug, twirling around once more. 

          "Ugh… that's great and all, but could you stop moving around? I was taking a nap…" he yawned, rubbing his eyes in an attempt to remove all the sleep in his eyes.

          "No, I can't stop moving around! I used every bit of my cleaning knowledge to get in during the last two-hour interview! Did you know how hard I used my skills just to get into the McDonald's business?" she demanded.

          "I thought the only thing you needed to know was 'Do you want to super-size that?'," he mumbled, successfully alert now.

          Kagome snorted and replied, looking annoyed for a moment, "Hardly. I thought so, too. But Mr. Himiya wanted a college diploma, super manners, and wonderful cleaning skills. I had to apply what I haven't done in two years just to get the job. I swear… if he wasn't my boss, I would have bashed his head for throwing those French fries at me."

          Shippo ignored the last comment; he was much interested in something else. "Didja get your uniform yet?" he asked slyly.

          "Nope," she muttered, shaking her head, "And thank God. He's giving me the clothes tomorrow. God, I hope I don't have to wear those corny hats with the 'M' logo on it."

          He looked downtrodden for a moment, but brightened again. "Oh well. When you come home tomorrow, make sure you don't take it off before I see it, OK?"

          She laughed, but agreed nonetheless. "Fine."

                                                                        ~*~*~*~

          Kagome went to bed early that night; she was supposed to wake up at 7 A.M. the next day, and she didn't want to go to work on her first day late. That would be a bad impression, and she didn't want to make any more of those.

          As she basked under the comfort of the bed, she felt a slight weight coming down on top of her chest. She thought it was just the blanket, but comforters don't move. In this case, the blanket was moving up and down, up and down. 

          "Wake up…" 

          Kagome heard a little voice whisper into her left ear, but brushed it away. It was probably her imagination.

          "Wake up," it tried again, "It's 7:30 A.M."

          "Mm… go away… it's too early to wake up…" she mumbled, burrowing her head into the soft, plushy pillow. To show that she wasn't going anywhere, she slumped further beneath her covers, too.

          "But… what about McDonald's?"

          "McDonald's can wa…."

          Finally, the time and words got through to her, and her eyes snapped open. She craned her neck a bit to look at the clock; it read 7:31 A.M. "Oh God, I'm late!" she shrieked, scrambling out of bed. Shippo fell of her chest unceremoniously along the way.

          **_Crap… this isn't good._**

          "I was supposed to be at McDonald's by 7:20 A.M." Kagome muttered, slamming the bathroom door shut. She allowed herself to cuss mildly just that one time for her ineptitude.

          She came running out of the bathroom and nearly tripped over her half-worn shoes. She zoomed through the kitchen and down the stairs, leading her into the gas station. Closing the door none too gently, she ran by Shippo, who was disguised as a bell once more. "Hope today's gonna be busy for you!" she called over her shoulders.

          "Oof!" Kagome grunted when she collided into an entering customer. "Sorry!"

          She babbled out the apology, sidestepping him in the process. She had no time to look the stranger in the eye and repeat her 'sorry'; she was late enough as it is!

          And so, with that thought in mind, she exited the station hurriedly.

          The stranger just stared at her back, smiling in amusement before turning his attention to the gas station once again.

          "Hello?"

          "Ring the bell!"

          He complied and found himself face-to-face with a boy named Shippo. "Welcome to the Gas Station! I'm Shippo, your secretary. How can I help you?"

                                                                        ~*~*~*~

          Mr. Himiya was not happy when Kagome barreled her way in. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I overslept and…"

          He cut her off with a little stare, and his eyes narrowed into green slits. "Thiss iss not a good impression to make!"

          Did she mention he was a snake youkai?

          Nodding furiously to make the point that she understood all too well, Kagome watched nervously as he moved behind the counter. She hoped that he wasn't writing out her first and only check. 

          **_Please don't let me be fired…._**

          Mr. Himiya rifled through one of the drawers for a few moments before coming up with a plausible-looking yellow skirt and red shirt with 'M' logos on both. 

          **_Yay! No French fries costume! Or that ugly hat, either._**

          "Here'ss the attire you wear. Don't losse it," he explained. He decided to give the poor human girl a break, since her race wasn't a very smart one. "You wassh it yoursself, and you make ssure you wear the exact thing. Got it?"

          Nodding wordlessly again, Kagome took the clothes and walked towards the toiletry room.

                                                                   ~*~*~*~

          For all the times she grumbled at her mom for making her clean the dinner tables and such, she now thanked her quietly for making her do all those house chores; they came so much in handy for this job.

          The morning hours were relatively busy; Kagome served breakfast while making them.

          **_Where are the cook and everybody who work in this place?_**

          During lunchtime, even more hungry eaters swarmed in; she was about to kiss her employees' feet when some of them entered the building.

          "How come you weren't here in the morning?" she asked one of the cooks while patiently waiting for the food order to come.

          "We work during lunch and dinner hours," he grunted in reply, poking at a pink meat patty.

          **_Oh, I guess I didn't specify what type of hours I was going to work in. Stupid…._**

          After that, Kagome distanced herself from the workers. Other than that, lunch went fine.

          By the time dinner shift rolled around, there were youkai lounging around the tables, talking or eating casually. It resembled more of a leisure café than a fast-food restaurant.

          She was relieved that the amount of youkai were winding down; if Kagome gave one more ear-splitting smile or ask in her coarse voice 'You want fries with that?' one more time, she would personally smash her head through the cashier.

          **_A citified person is never cut out for the countrified people…. Now I understand why I never took jobs as waitresses or chefs…._**

          Kagome desperately wished the clock to strike 9 P.M. so she could pack up and go home quickly. "For the love of hot chocolate," she mumbled, clearly irascible. Her nails drummed constantly, hoping the long minute hand would strike 12. 

          **_Hurry up… come on… just a little more…._**

          It was 9 o'clock, and she mentally cried at the beautiful sight.

          **_The store is closed, and I can go to sleep… thankfully._**

          Grabbing her coat on the hanging rack, she waved cheerfully and bid farewell to her coworkers.

          As she exited the restaurant and walked across the street, she began to idly examine her hands. They were, at the moment, lathered with dry grease.

          **_Disgusting._**

          She would've been washing her hands right now with the strongest-scented soap she could find, but Kagome had to go and not mention which shift(s) she wanted to work in. 

          She suddenly noticed how everything seemed to be illuminated tonight, especially her. Looking up, Kagome saw that it was the full moon.

          She forced herself not to stare into its lonely, hypnotizing beauty. She didn't need to explain why she didn't like them anymore.

                                                                        ~*~*~*~

          It was amazing how rotten her luck was that day. She had entered late on her first day of work, barreled right into a stranger, and had worked three grueling shifts.

          She thought it couldn't go downhill anymore, since she was within 15 feet from the gas station. Kagome wasn't capable of getting into any more trouble when her home base was practically right in front of her.

          A cute dog was sitting upright stiffly about a feet from the gas station entrance. His white, delicate fur, with the exception of near his gray paws, swayed gently to the soft blow of the wind, and his eyes were squeezed tight.

          "Cute doggy," she immediately cooed, stopping in front of the Huskie. Kagome stopped down to gently pat its head before shooing it out of the way.

          Before she could even extend her hand, the dog's eyes snapped open, revealing them to be an emerald green color. At once, she had the little nagging voice/sixth sense telling her that this situation was a bit more warped than it looked like.

          **_Déjà vu…._**

          The once submissive doggy saw her extended hand and growled threateningly, as if to say, "Don't touch me!"

           He was probably saying that in dog-language. His eyes glinted suddenly, and he began to snarl and snap his jaw at her.

          Backing off, Kagome tried in vain to calm him down for whatever reason he had for feeling intimidated by her. "I-I didn't mean to insult you or anything…."

          The stuttered apology didn't work, as the dog half-heartedly sprang forward without a warning in an attempt to knock her down. She jumped out of the way easily but skittishly and forgot all about sleep and the gas station; she bolted in a random direction, which happened to be to the left. The dog didn't give up, unfortunately, and continued on her trail.

          **_My God, what a rabid dog!_**

          Kagome kept running, trying her best to ignore a growing cramp developing on her right side and tripping over occasionally on rocks and clumps of dirt. She had no idea where she was going to end up, as long as she escaped the raging Huskie.

          The mutt, on the other hand, had a different plan in mind to where she was going to end up. This time, the dog focused on its moving objective and jumped.

          "Ah!" Kagome gasped, startled. The sudden weight appeared on top of her back, and her tired legs immediately gave out, causing her to crumple to the ground, the dog on top. She couldn't escape, since he was sitting on top of her exposed back, only protected by the thin layer of shirt she was wearing.

          **_Don't hurt me… a-ah…._**

          She suddenly felt something sharp, almost knife-like, thrust itself into her soft, tender flesh on her back just beneath her shoulder blade; she didn't move, thinking that if she did, then it would encourage the Huskie to do even more damage to her back.

          Suddenly, the pointed object jerked itself away from inside her, and she winced as some of her skin ripped from inside and around the hole, sticking onto the knife-like thing. Kagome thought for a fleeting second that it wouldn't do that that again.

          How foolish that thought was.

          The pain came back again, this time, streaking from her upper back to her hip. It was unbearable, and she began to cry. It didn't take her too long-only two minutes-to figure out that the dog was trying to claw her to shreds of human pieces. His claws dug deeper when he saw that she wasn't yelling, and his snout curled a bit as she began to whimper. With a savage snarl, he roughly dragged them across her back, making long, ragged, red trails of red appear along the way. Bits of human tissues splattered across the front of the dog's side, and his snout only curled even more as she screamed in pain. 

          Kagome felt the blood spurt from the bloody mess on her back; it gurgled angrily, almost like acid, before spilling over to her sides and soaking the flimsy, cotton blouse. It was too much for the shirt, and soon the blood was dripping through the chemise. Her jagged flesh was being hanging barely onto her body, and a cool wind blew, stinging her injury.

          **_I don't think playing dead is right._**

          She didn't know how she was going to get out of this deadly scenario, since a big dog was on top of her, tearing her back into torn pieces of skin. The Huskie was tired of hearing her whimper; he wanted her to scream in pain, to sob out loud, crying to a lesser mammal to stop his assault. With an even bigger thought in mind, he took his claws leisurely out of the ending puncture holes created near her hips and started for her head. 

          This caused a shift in weight, and Kagome had somehow managed to free one leg; one leg was more than enough. With a yelp, she lifted it slightly and rammed it into the dog's abdomen. Heeled shoes were at an advantage at some point, and this was one of those times. The surprised attack stunned the dog momentarily, and he fell a bit off her. But the little extra change in weight was just enough for her to scramble away from under the dog, even if the jerky actions made her back bleed more.

          As Kagome began the game of Cat and Mouse again, she touched her back like before in her apartment. However, this time, it was her own blood, and she flinched as her hand tentatively touched the raw flesh leaving a blood drip every few seconds behind her, creating a noticeable track leading towards wherever she would be heading. Another cool wind blew to the right, picking up some sand along its way. As it hit her in the face, the wound opened a bit more painfully.

          The Huskie, now recovered, scrambled back to his feet again. This time, he was angry. With a low, guttural growl, he bounded once again towards his bleeding aim. 

          Cold water drops began to fall distantly, just lightly sprinkling the ground with its wetness.

          **_Oh no… it's raining._**

          Kagome bit back an awful swear as she tore down the streets as fast as her legs were allowed to go. Her back was profusely bleeding from the strenuous exercise, and if she didn't stop sometimes soon, she would collapse from loss of blood.

         Turning her head, Kagome hoped that the carnivorous Huskie wasn't behind her.

          He was.

          And he was gaining on her steadily, too. Kagome whipped her head around, wishing she hadn't done that. His claws had already raked more than half of her outer skin on the back, and she didn't need the second layer to follow suit. She imagined having her veins ripped out of her body like an electrical wire part of a VCR, and she didn't like it… not the conjured feeling, not how her made up blood spilled around her everywhere…. Actually, that was reality, but she was imagining even more blood. 

          The blood had already soaked right through her shirt, and it was spreading outwards, now. Pretty soon, Kagome would be dry of it….

          She suddenly swiveled sharply to the right and continued down the random street. She came upon an intersection and took a left. Left, right, left, right… Kagome alternated her turns in a worthless attempt to escape the dog, however close he was to her heels right then. At one point, she couldn't run anymore, as the pain in her hips grew to a certain extent where she couldn't even stand still without feeling dizzy or nauseous, and she stopped point-blank.

          **_Not too much loss…._**

          She leaned against the rough, cool bricks heavily, taking in ragged breaths and trying to calm her heart down; it was earth shattering in her ears, and it was all she heard while trying to regulate her breathing once more. The whole time, she kept her eyes shut; she didn't want to hyperventilate by the presence of the mangy mutt with his bloody paws and sharp snout. The wall supporting her began to run with her blood. 

          Kagome couldn't help it; she didn't want to open her eyes and face the dog again… not while she was in this deathly condition. But something made her peek out from under her lids, and she was forced to see… that the dog was nowhere within 15 feet in range. She nearly cried out in joy at this sudden revelation, but quieted herself before anything came out of her mouth.

          There was no way she was going to attract that dog again.

          **_Breathe…._**

          Kagome closed her eyes again, this time, a bit more peacefully than before. Her sweat-drenched face relaxed slightly, and her lips eventually loosened from its grim curl. Her hair still clung to her neck and back, but only because the rain was coming down a bit harder, but not too much, than before. The only thing that showed no signs of stopping was her openly bleeding wound.

          As her eyes stayed closed longer, her other senses began to sharpen. The bricks behind her felt ten times rougher and harder than before, and she felt the cool rain splash upon her skin. They came as sharp pricks, and after a while, it began to hurt her skin. It felt like many bees were stinging her all at once, and she frowned in discomfort. Kagome's hearing also honed in on the miniscule sounds she hadn't caught before. With the exception of the rain falling, she heard all sorts of noises, some creaks and groans that sprung out of nowhere, and….

          Her eyes snapped open and she froze, including her breathing. The Huskie was standing in front of her, eyes trained only on hers. They gleamed in the moonlight, malicious and looking ready for hunting down.

          "… Um… nice doggy…?"

          This only agitated the dog's annoyance further. He seemed to be glowing an aura that screamed in Kagome's face, "I'm gonna rip your head off after I skin you to bits…."

          He didn't seem to move, but only kept his eyes on her. Kagome didn't want to break his gaze; she didn't want to run again. As she stared back at the dog fearfully, she began to feel slightly drained, exhausted. Her body felt overworked, and her limbs burned and bunched up into a taut ball of muscles. It tightened more and more until the pain was overbearing and tears welled up in her eyes.

          She couldn't explain what was happening, but she still didn't dare to look away from the dog. Kagome couldn't feel the bricks on her palms, and her cheeks no longer felt the few wisps of strands of hair lightly playing across her face. She wasn't able to move her tongue or budge.

          **_He's paralyzing me!_**

          By the time she realized this, it was too late. Kagome couldn't control her body movements anymore. The only thing moving was the blood dispersing from the nasty gash on her back, and it was still going strong. This time, she tried to avert her gaze to try and slow down the paralysis process, and found that she couldn't tear her stare from his. After a few more minutes, he slowly looked down towards the ground, satisfied that she couldn't move. Kagome discovered after he released his eyes from hers, she could roll them around. God help her if the dog was going to shred them to organ bits.

          But, surprisingly, the dog didn't. In fact, he did something Kagome would never have guessed. The Huskie stood there for a moment, his green eyes clouding, almost lost in another world. Slowly, before her eyes, his fur ceased to have been on his body in the first place; he resembled an overgrown Chihuahua, and she would've laughed, if it hadn't been for the current situation she was in and the tiny, little detail that her throat was also paralyzed. Its eyes that rested on both sides of the faces swam forth until it stopped in front of the face. The sharp eyes grew big and dilated to match those of a human's. The bared snout shrank in size, and the teeth became unsharpened. The lips formed around the nude flesh surrounding the teeth and turned a dark shade of pink, on the verge of red. The body had formatted to fit that of a lean man, and the hind legs snapped, cracked, and broke to form into a human leg. The repulsive sounds echoed throughout the desolate street. His paws sickeningly formed webs, then fingers, and the claws dulled, thankfully. But she saw her blood and bits of torn flesh underneath the nails. The pressure of the rain increased even more.

          The dog-turned-fully-human now lay on the floor, head hunched. He was taking in deep, unsteady breaths, as if the whole body shifting was too much for his strength to handle. Suddenly, he looked up to see Kagome, and his face crinkled into a delighted grin; the man began to chuckle proudly. "I got you."

          Kagome, meanwhile, was struggling to move, and only succeeded in whimpering. It sounded barely as she tried to work with a paralyzed throat. She stopped squirming as soon as she heard the words.

          **_… It can't be…._**

          She was dumbstruck; how was this possible? She ran away! He wasn't supposed to find her here! How did he do it? He wasn't able to locate her in one small town.

          **_How? How?!?! You son of a-_**

          Her thoughts were cut off when she saw him advancing towards her, crawling on his hands and knees slowly, stealthily.  Alarm bells went off in her head, warning her of something dangerous about to happen, as he stopped in front of her and straightened up, making him looming over her. "Well," he said when he noticed her looking somewhere else besides in front of him. "I finally got you. You little cow… running away when I told you not to…."

          The man became angry from the mere thought that someone, a woman, no less, would disobey him. "You wretched little…."

          He began to shake from it, and a wave of dreaded anticipation crept up on her. He wasn't going to-

          The man's hand flew out fast and struck a blow across her face, the action so fast that she had gone blank for a few moments. She really didn't feel anything as the shock wore off. Her cheeks were numb, and she was partially grateful for at least an advantage.

          Too bad she just had to go and jinx herself. Suddenly, the pain entered her nerves, growing from a dull, low point to an intense, spreading one "Ow…" she moaned, her cheek throbbing. That was when she realized she could talk.

          "I guess the effects are wearing off a bit quicker than I thought," he muttered, smiling. But there was something disturbingly wrong with the smile.

          **_It's familiar…._**

          Where had she seen that smile?

          "Now that you are beginning to feel your body, let's try this again," he said, grinning from ear to ear.

          His hand reached down and grabbed a handful of her hair, yanking her upwards. Once her face was leveled with his, he whispered, "I want to hear you cry… so entertain me with your pathetic tears."

          And with that, he threw her to the side and onto the street like a rag doll. By this time, the effects of paralysis had worn off to around near her shoulders. As she fell, Kagome felt an especially sharp rock puncture her shoulder blade, scratching at it away.  Kagome bit back the cry threatening to escape her lips; she wasn't going to give the sick man the happiness he wanted so badly.

          The two kept at this for 15 minutes, each time, one being the physically offense and the other playing a lack of defense. The pain increased more, and Kagome found herself wanting to give up at certain times and cry out for him to stop. But she didn't; the thought of giving up to a bastard of a criminal like him was enough to will herself to bite down her cry of pain and let him carry on his business. 

          On the last blow, the man punched her in the left ribcage, severing one of the bones. At this point, she could feel all of her body parts, even the bruises and cuts. But Kagome couldn't fight back; her hands were twisted above her head, and her feet were positioned in such a way so that she couldn't kick. All of her breath was knocked out of her, and she felt lightheaded for a moment; then the image of a broken bone inside her body brought in the hurt that came along with it, and it slammed into her smashed stomach. He let go of her, and she crumpled to the ground in a pile of broken heap, something that greatly disappointed the man.

          "Get up; you're stronger than this, you pathetic girl."

          The man backed up his words with several kicks directed in the broken ribs, causing pain to shoot as far up as into her arms. It hurt… she had to admit, it hurt like hell. But it wasn't just the fading kind of hurt; it was more of the permanent kind, where it lasted for quite some time before showing any signs of disappearing. She felt like her arms were on fire. "Ah…" she winced and squeezed her eyes shut again, hoping it would go away.

          **_Funny how this is so familiar…._**

          Somehow… she had this feeling as she was lying on the ground, being kicked to death, that this scene had replayed itself somewhere before.

          **_The dream._**

          Kagome's eyes shot open, regardless of the beating, and she realized what was going on… the pain, the fire, hands that made her feel weighted down, paralysis…. 

          Before she could finish her suspicion inside her head, a hand gripped around her throat and pulled her up. "Darn, you're still not yelling yet."

          He smiled a little too earnestly before slamming her against the soaked bricks, the momentum causing chunks of them to fly off. Now, she was dangling several inches off the ground. Kagome tried to glare at a trash can in the distance, but the man jerked her head painfully to meet his. "You aren't a very good distraction. So I guess it's settled; I'll have my fun another way."

          She made no remark; she was confident he would release her soon and continue with her bashing. Why she thought of that, she didn't know. Kagome was obviously wrong, since his hand crept into his side pocket and  brought out a pocketknife.

          Her eyes widened frighteningly, and she began to feverishly scratch at his hands. "Now you decide to listen," he stated, looking a bit pleased, "But oh well. Toys come and go."

          Within a blink, his knife shot up, ready to easily pass through the soft skin beneath her chin… and stopped. Instead, it grazed her skin, and a little line of blood began to appear. 

          "Wait… I think I might want to keep at this a little longer," he said tauntingly, "Should I kill you here, or here?"

          As the vile words came spurting out of his mouth, he leaned in a bit to see her reaction; it was pouring very hard by now, and Kagome had to constantly blink to get the water out of her eyes.

          Something furry was moving.

          It was attached to the man, and Kagome knew it was a tail from past experiences with encounters with deer, foxes, and dogs. She knew the killer wasn't a demon, too.

          **_So why…. Unless…. No… n-no…._**

          He had emerald eyes and a tail. Kagome knew few youkai who had these traits, but only one person knew how to do that feat, from dog to man, or whatever he desired. She didn't want to believe it… but she was stunned nevertheless.

          "Right here," the man finished, pointing his knife near her temple, "Right here, I'll kill you."

          His hand drew back for the final, bloody blow, hand tightened still around her small neck. Kagome suddenly sprang into action, trying to pry his hands away, but it was futile. The knife came at a blundering speed, aimed at its target. 

          "S-shippo…."

          The knife stopped miraculously within a mere hair from her head.

          For a moment, no one moved. She raised her eyes to meet his, still struggling. It was no surprise that the man was a bit baffled by the single-worded accusation for a moment, but he covered it up with a mask of snarling. "Who the hell is 'Shippo'?!?!"

          "D-don't lie…" she choked, beginning to suffocate terribly from the lack of oxygen.

          "What are you talking about?" the man was taken aback at the pressed allegations, and he didn't like it.

          The only answer was a gagging sound… and a pointing finger.

          Enraged, he knocked her to the ground, thus releasing her; he began to back away.

          "I'm not Shippo or whoever you're talking about!"

          "If you're not him, then why are you panicking?" she screamed over the loud roar of the rain. "If you weren't Shippo, you would have killed me now, even with my stupid mutterings! Even…."

          "Shut up!" the man roared, backing away slightly.

          "I thought you cared for me!" she yelled, trembling to stand up, "How could you? Why?"

          "I always did care for you!" he screamed back, "I always did as a friend! B-but…."

          By now, the man had stopped backing up and a familiar puff of smoke surrounded his body; when it cleared, there was Shippo in his true form, hunched over his tiny body, crying. 

          "Things happen, and they change you," he began to mutter, sobbing violently.

          Kagome, who had successfully mastered standing up, stumbled towards him, using the wall for support often. She had heard him whisper something, but didn't care now. "W-why? Why would you hurt me?" she asked feebly, her vision beginning to darken. This was probably from the huge amount of blood loss on her back.

          The rain had decided to loosen up, and now, it wasn't pouring and drenching the two lone figures. The soft patter of it sounded throughout the hurting silence.

          "It was either you or them," he quivered, backing up against the wall and curling himself into a small, fuzzy ball, "It was you or them."

          **_What?_**

          Shippo seemed to have caught onto her confused feeling, because he said in a tiny voice that was filled with grief, "He gave me a choice: you or them. I couldn't let them die…. What kind of person would choose over his own…?"

          "What?" Kagome interrupted trying to clear her muddled head. She was in front of him and bent down to try to touch and comfort the child. But her legs gave out, and she ended up in front of Shippo.

          **_Oh no… I can't even stand._**

          "Him!" Shippo burst out, crying, "T-they wouldn't do it, so he used me in return for them…."

          Kagome reached out to gather him into her arms, and he flinched at the touch. She didn't notice, since her sight was becoming even worse. "I'm sorry… please, I'm sorry…" he cried, eyes spilling tears.

          Weakly, she brought him close to her chest and stroked his head. "It's OK… it's OK…" she whispered softly. But she was lying, lying straight through her teeth. Her only friend had stabbed her… emotionally and physically.

          Her vision was completely dark, her sense of touch was no more. The rapid but decreasing rain dulled in her ears, and she half-heard Shippo shaking in her arms.

          Kagome fell to the side, head knocking against the road, and she lay there, unconscious. The injury had become a very tender, sensitive scar while the water washed away the blood that had fallen against the wall, the trail, and Shippo's paw.

                                                                      ~*~*~*~

          **_Oh my God._**

          She had jerked awake immediately after that, panting. "Not again," she groaned, wiping the sweat off her face.

          This was the second time in a row Kagome had these dreams, and she didn't like them; she was pretty sure the feeling was mutual, too, if dreams could feel.

          She made an effort to get out of the sticky bed and eventually made her way into the small but clean bathroom. Flicking on the light bulb, she squinted as the blinding glow found its way through her closed lids. "Ah!" she mumbled, blinking rapidly to familiarize herself with a change in her dark habitat.

          **_Dumb…idiotic…who invented light…._**

          Kagome leaned against the bathroom counter, closing her eyes for a minute. When she opened them, she saw her reflection, and it wasn't exactly what she would call a perfect hair day. Her eyes sported dark bags, and her hair was in a disarray, sticking wildly out everywhere. She inhaled a bit and grimaced a bit at the sudden stab in her stomach.

          Rats… she had forgotten all about her abused ribcage.

          Turning on the faucet, Kagome began to splash her face with water in hopes of clearing her head. "What's going on?" a sleepy voice called by the doorway. She turned around… and saw Shippo.

          "Oh, hey," she said softly, all annoyance gone, "Nothing. Just another dream."

          "About what?"

          "The past, as usual," she muttered, resisting the urge to throw a bar of soap at the wall in an attempt to vent her frustration.

          Yes, she had been through three different towns, and they all ended the same: he would find her. That dream where she first met Shippo… that was the first town. She had only stayed there for three days before resorting to living on the road again. Her last hideout was the longest by far, three weeks before he discovered her. Kagome found that if she skipped around places, it would make it much harder for him to find her.

          "Well," Shippo interrupted her reminiscence, "I'll be sleeping now. Night."

          "Night," she answered, looking at him sadly as he left.

          **_Family's gone… like me…._**

          Kagome was back to thinking again. She was a bit more terrified now that she knew one thing about the man's distorted personality: he liked to hurt people around her before actually coming after her. There was no way he was going to get Shippo; She'd be damned if he laid a single finger on the boy… the only way she could save him from the guy was to take him along for the ride.

          Some ride this was.

                                                                            ~*~*~*~

          Morning came agonizingly slow for Kagome, who stayed up all night again. She crawled into the bedroom and noticed that Shippo was curled up on her bed, sleeping soundly. "Let's go," she shook him a bit to wake him up.

          He mumbled something and turned away from her. She sighed and picked him up to put him in the car. Then, she picked Buyo up by the collar and dragged both of them (Well, just Buyo.) to her car outside. 

           Kagome entered the main lobby of the motel and walked up to the receptionist, who was busily filing her nails while watching a black and white T.V. "Excuse me," she began politely, trying to get the receptionist's attention.

          "Yes?"

          "I'd like to pay for last night, please."

          "Sure…" the receptionist trailed off as the female on the screen started across the room for the male. 

          "I would like to pay now."

          "Hold your bottom…" she replied aggravatingly.

          Kagome successfully followed the wish for about 15 seconds, feeling antsy. She knew the odds of the man popping out from behind the bush next to her was very slim, but still….

          She couldn't take it any longer and said in an even tone, "I need the bill now."

          "Didn't you…."

          "Listen! I am in a rush, and if I don't get the bill in my grubby little hands right now, I will report about this subordinate behavior to your boss! Do you understand?" she threatened, feeling her face become red.

          That grabbed the girl's attention, as she suddenly switched off the T.V. and said coolly, "The movie was old, anyways."

          Satisfied, Kagome watched as the girl calculated for the night's total, making sure that she didn't add anything other than the room charge. "3,000 yens, please."

          Kagome nodded tightly and searched in her pockets for the money. She came up with 3,000 even. "I'll need the receipt."

          "Oh, I'm sorry," the girl said, sickeningly sweet, "But here, we keep the receipt."

          Without even bothering to shoot back a comment, she grabbed the paper that was being printed out of the cashier and turned away, leaving the receptionist. "Hey!" she called, "That's our property! I'll report this as vandalism!"

          But Kagome didn't hear her last words; she was outside, walking towards her car. She needed to cover up her trail, and she couldn't afford to leave behind any clues.  

          Once she was settled inside, she placed the receipt carefully into the glove compartment. Kagome padded around the front of her jacket for something… and came out with the cell phone.

          **_The last thing of my only valuable… used to trace me._**

          Kagome threw her possession on the road, noticing how it cracked under pressure. She started up the engine and exited the motel's driveway.

          **_How clever… using my banking account and my cell phone to trace my calls and withdrawals. How damn clever._**

****

          She was up to someone very smart if he was able to hack into two of the most highly guarded things.

          As she drove onwards, crushing the cell phone beneath the tires, she glanced at Shippo one last time before keeping her eyes on the road. It looked like they were going to have to start over again….

*

*

A/N: Hehe… betcha you didn't think it would be Shippo disguised as the man, now didja? Did I throw the curveball right? *Audience: No!* Oh rats…. :( Hey, I did say it was going to be long! This is about twice as longer than any of my chapters! *applaud* Thank you…. *bows* Anyways, I have to tell you something. Right now, it's 6:41 A.M., and my computer has been cut off. My dad and mom had it with me last night, so they went ahead with their threat and took off my Internet resource. So now I'm using my dad's computer. It will be a while before I can update again, and if I can review, because their main purpose is to make sure my priority was set straight. I'm sorry for having to make you suffer in the process. 

Anyways, the next chapter is when INUYASHA comes in! Now, they'll have regular jobs, so… can you guess what Sango's, Miroku's, and Inuyasha's jobs will be? Hehe… I know the perfect one for Inuyasha….

Next Chapter (It'll be a while.): Meeting with Strange (No gore in this one, I promise!)

5/10/03~ OK, so I'm done with the rewrite of Chapter 4. Not much to say, except I'm tying up the loose ends of Chapter 5, and expect it out by at least next Saturday, my brother's birthday. Now, I have a few things that I need you guys to respond/do/read:

1) Do - SAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BROTHER! Just include it in your review!

2) Respond - Answer this question:** What are Sango's, Miroku's, Kouga's, and Inuyasha's jobs?**

3) Read - **Claimer:**** It has come to my attention that some people on fanfiction.net are very uncreative and resort to plagiarism. I'm not pointing fingers to anybody, but I wanted to say that the plot is mine. I don't want anyone copying my story word for word or the story goes along very similar. And it doesn't help if you switched the characters around, like Sango would be in place of Kagome. No… I would still consider that plagiarism.**

4) When I was writing that claimer, I meant it. I mean, how would you feel if someone decided to steal your hard-working idea and turned it into his/her own half-baked idea? I don't think it would fit well with you. I'm not trying to come off sounding really mean and nasty, but that is how I feel. No, I'm not a lunatic. Yes, I am paranoid, and yes, I had sugar before I wrote it. But even though I'm still not myself *twitch*, I still meant it.

Hehe… yeah, that's pretty long. ^_^() But don't you just love reading A/N's? *audience: No!* Well, I do! Along with reading everyone's profiles, nutrition facts, and other people's reviews. -_-* I have way too much time on my hands…. Well, not lately. Here's the problem: I have five projects, one for music, one for French, two for civics, and one for English. Not to mention some English book reports. I also have SOLS coming up, like the week after this week, so keep this in mind that I might not have Chapter 6 coming out between May 10, 2003- May 24, 2004. J/K! It's really May 10, 2003 to May 24, 2003. Hehe… I already promised you Chapter 5 by next week? OK…. Get ready for INUYASHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (It's his debut! *throws confetti in the air*)


	6. Chapter 5 Meetings with Strange

                                                                                                         Blood-Stained

A/N: o_0 'Confused' was the word that popped out when I was reading your reviews. =(Weren't you paying attention, or was it really boring? Am I a bad writer? I think I'll just go away… where my HW lies in front of me, calling out my name. Am I a bad authoress? Is this REALLY pathetic as to you having to lie to me about my writing 'ability'? :( I'm feeing squashed and downtrodden right now…. :( Damn my low self-esteem. *goes to corner to cry* 

                                                         Chapter 5~ Meetings with Strange

          … Thump.

          … Thump.

          … Thump.

          … Thump.

          The occasional rock along the road stirred the car a bit, shaking everyone and everything inside. Outside, the sun glared down on the moving object, almost directing its unavoidable rays on its roof. The road in front of her blurred, and she almost saw a rise of steam given off by the blacktop.

          **_Convection: movement of heat. Just one of three ways for heat travel._**

          Kagome unconsciously smiled a bit, proud that she remembered something from her freshman year in college.

          **_Radiation: movement of heat through waves._**

          She often did this 'Memory Game'; otherwise, how would she pass the time with the excessive amount of road traveling she had on her hand? Other days, when Kagome felt like playing something different for a change, she would pick up food from convenient stores and scan the ingredients, looking for familiar words that would pop out right in front of her eyes. It was really a weird habit she picked up along the way. Science had always been her favorite subject, since she was able to maintain her high score average throughout her education-hood.

          **_But those darn equations…._**

          Kagome decided to not dwell on those velocity solutions; they gave off very evil vibes, in her opinion.

          But, nevertheless, she really liked science-related things, especially the human body. She was fascinated with technology and human splicing, not the other type of human body: the dreaded human biology every ninth grader had to endure every year at her former high school. Kagome shuddered at the period where she was forced to memorize details about the sexual systems for female and male as required by her high school.

          **_One word for you: scary._**

          Snapping back to attention, she noticed Shippo was awake, blinking at her owlishly, with tired, bleary eyes. "Are you remembering something?"

          "It's called reminiscing."

          "Oh."

          There was a short pause of silence as the two stared stonily ahead, one thinking about the loss of parents and the other wondering how much longer the car would press on until it broke down. This looked like another grim day for both, as neither attempted to lighten the stormy mood, unlike all the other days.

          "… Are you hungry?"

          "Yes."

                                                                       ~*~*~*~

          Kagome entered the rundown gas station, a look of disgust briefly flitting across her face, unable to stay behind the fake, placid one.

          **_And they complain about no customers._**

          The once lovely green-and-white checkered floor was now faded into a terrible green-yellow color, with slightly yellow-orange tiles for accompaniment. Above, the roof was cracked and splintered everywhere; she vaguely felt slight pieces of loose dirt falling on top of her head.

          **_It's not going to fall. Stop being tense, Kagome!_**

          Mint green wallpaper hung around the room, barely sticking to the walls like they did some 50 years ago. The air itself was probably too polluted to inhale, but she'd manage. However, the food there, composed of chips, candy, and all the junk food named on the planet,  were decent enough to eat; in other words, they hadn't extended past their expiration dates, so it was 90% safe to digest in her stomach. (The other ten percent was the doubtful part inside her.)

          "Need 'ssistance?" a low, bored voice rang out.

          Turning around, she saw a fleeting image of an obese man clothed in a two-sizes-too-small manly muscle tank top, dirt and oil clinging to his face and body. Oh yeah, and he was half-bald. 

          Of course, it was just a stereotypical picture she often linked with these types of surroundings. And when Kagome faced the guy, she found her prediction to not be too far off. Her imaginary fat guy was staring back at her lazily.

          **_Wow… I have the power to make imaginary things become solid. Very cool._**

          "I said, need 'ssistance?" he drawled out again.

          **_This is so accurate it's ridiculous!_**

          "No, not really," she replied breezily, "Just… where do you keep the food?"

          The man's small, squinted eyes popped open a bit in surprise, not full registering the question. It took a few long moments, but he began to laugh. "T-that's a good o-one!" he rasped between the guttural chuckles.

          "What's funny?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at his comment. All she had done was ask a simple question: where was the food?

          "Food? Are you blind or somethin'? I don't think you're blind, because your pupils don't look dilated or covered with some sorta film. Look around!" he waved an arm around the store, almost pulling off the air of majesty. 

          Kagome looked around before turning her head once more at him and said, "And…? I'm asking you where the food is."

          The man's eyes narrowed all of a sudden. He wasn't exactly sure if she was insulting him or not, but he decided that she was just either extremely nearsighted or retarded.

          "The.Food.Is.In.Front.Of.You.It's.Sur.Roun.Ding.You," he made sure to split up the words into one-syllable phrases so she would comprehend its meaning. To heighten the concept, he even picked up a bag of chips at the rack nearest to him and waved around with it.

          "That's not food," she said, irritated that he thought she was a retard.

          The man's intuition about her mental state was squashed when she said that, and he flared up at the accusation. "Huh? Whaddaya mean it ain't food?"

          "This isn't food," Kagome repeated, grabbing a Twinkie from a counter rack, "This… this thing looks half-dead!"

          "Of course it is! It can be eaten."

          "No it can't! What is this filthy thing?"

          The man was very irked by now. How dare an adult younger than him barge into his store and declare all the food, especially the Twinkies, rotten! "Listen," he began, getting off the chair, "It's only looks half-dead because it is DEAD in the first place!"

          "That's not what I meant!" she yelled back at him, refusing to believe his outrageous claim, "It hardly looks sanitary, let alone edible!"

          "Hey! That 'unsanitary' object has been sold millions worldwide! I think that's enough proof that people like the cake you're degrading! And let's not forget; the expiration date on it proved you wrong!"  
  


          Kagome continued to carry on the petty fight; at one point, 15 minutes into the fight, she raised her arms and flailed them around, as if really mad. She stared straight into the person's eyes and glared persistently, insistently implying annoyingly that the Twinkie was a toxic creation if coming from this store. "I don't know where you've been, but this 'Twinkie', as you call it, here gives animal poop a better name!"

          This escalated the heated debate, and the man began to argue back even more forcefully. This also meant 100% attention was focused on her.

          The two continued arguing, and Kagome flailed her arms once again, wondering why she didn't catch her response.

          And she saw at the corner of her eyes, where the door was, Shippo pointing to the bell taped to the door.

          **_Why does everyone do that?_**

          Her stomach growled audibly in her ears and probably externally, but the man was too busy yelling at her to notice. Kagome was struck with a wonderful idea, and she yelled back, this time, extra loud. "No! You listen to me! What kind of person sells spoiled stuff to innocent customers who happen to be wandering into this cruel store by accident and buy the gum?"

          "It's not spoiled!"

          "I see flecks of green on the chocolate product! If the chocolate has moss growing on it, what about the donuts?" she feigned a look of horror upon her face for extra effects.

          "They're mint sprinkles, you idiot!"

          "You're lying, you butthead!"

          "That was pathetic! Where did you learn that from, third grade?"

          "I learn from the best."

          "You know they're sprinkles!"

          "Liar, liar, pants on fire! And don't forget-you're hanging on a telephone wire!"

          As she screamed the last part out, she flailed her arms out for the third and final time, making her resemble a flapping, squawking chicken. Shippo was a little hesitant for a bit, but went on. He opened the door swiftly but carefully, and the bell gave off a melodious tinkle.

          The man barely paid attention, let alone turning his head around.

          It worked! Kagome's plan had succeeded, and she jerked her head to the side. To the man, she was cracking the joints in her neck, prepared to take him on. But to Shippo, it meant, "Hurry up!"

          Shippo scurried quietly across the floor and into a random aisle, barely making a creak due to his lack of weight. He stuffed the duffel bag with him anything his grubby little hands touched. In a few mere seconds, he nodded and gave a thumbs-up while edging towards the doorway, a signal that meant it was time to exit.

          "You know what?" Kagome's voice rose several notches, "I don't care anymore! Your Twinkie is stinking rotten, and I refuse to buy or consume this disgusting product!"

          "It is not rotten!"

          "You probably want it all to yourself, so I'll just leave you alone with the cake and just pray that your digestion can't handle the product. And I hope that as a result of that, you get big-time indigestion!"

          "Well, who invited you to come parading into my store, demanding to see top-quality product? Which, by the way, IS top-quality product!"

          "The CONSUMER is supposed to make the final decision here! In this mixed economy of this country, YOU have to adjust your products according to MY needs. Obviously, you can't because the stupid Twinkie, which I was supposed to BUY, has already been eaten… by fungi!"

          At that point, Shippo had slipped outside, the ring of the bell lost in the sound of her 'passionate' speech. Voice now coarse, she managed a glare before throwing the Twinkie in the man's face and running out of the store, secretly gloating.

          **_Success!_**   

          "Why that…" he spluttered angrily, leaving the sentence trailing. If he had finished it, there would be some choicy words included. Never had he seen such subordinate adults in his life before!

          He put the Twinkie back into the rack and looked around, muttering, "The food here is fine. It's not bad."

          But Kagome had put suspicion into his head, and he couldn't help but walk around, examining the groceries here and there. When he came upon the last aisle, the one farthest from him, there something quite abnormal about the section. On closer look, the man found that a huge portion, smack dab in the middle, of the candy and cakes had been stolen.

          "The stupid… aargh!"

          Words couldn't describe how he felt right then.

                                                                          ~*~*~*~

          "Hey, you want a Twinkie?" Shippo asked innocently, holding the chocolate crème-filled mini-cake.

          Kagome wasn't sure if he was making fun of her for picking a fight about a Twinkie, but she left it unanswered. Instead, she took one look at it, turned her attention away, and replied, "No thanks…. You aren't going to puke after you eat it, are you?"

          "Nah… I think demonic stomach acids burn better than a human's."

          "Wow, never knew that," she responded in return, nodding her head, "If I had demonic stomach acids, I wouldn't have to worry about food poisoning."

          "Yep… you'd only get mild, very mild stomachache. But that's only if you eat some rotten things. If you eat non-edible stuff though, like the kitchen pipe under your sink, you would get major indigestion."

          "… Have you tried doing that?"

          Shippo suddenly found the chips in his hand interesting, and she smiled at the quietness. "You've eaten metal?"

          "I was two back then!"

          For the rest of the day, the two chatted about their victory and such while eating. And once again, they had no destination in mind.

                                                                    ~*~*~*~

          "WELCOME…."

          Bolting upright, Kagome punched off the radio button out of pure reflex. The blaring announcement was cut off, and she sat there, staring into space for a moment, trying to recollect herself, before realizing what she had just done.

          "Man," she mumbled, leaning over her seat to try locating the decapitated button, "Why does it have to be so loud… especially on a Sunday at 8:30 in the morning?"

          Discovering the switch, she straightened up and started for the radio.

          All sorts of colorful wire stuck out of the outlet, some looking a bit more dangerous than the others.

          **_On second thought, I'll find a skilled mechanic._**

          She stuffed the button into the glove compartment, intending to do just that. As Kagome shifted around to find her seatbelt, she finally saw her surroundings; candy wrappers and emptied bags of chips were strewn everywhere, especially on Shippo's side of the car. Crushed soda cans were present, too. Kagome vaguely recalled of the little contest she had with him: who could crush more soda cans on their foreheads. She suddenly felt her ego flare up: 21 cans! Shippo managed to get 19 before stopping, complaining of a headache that had formed. Kagome rubbed her own head a bit, trying to relieve an oncoming one herself; this talent of hers was going to severe her head one day….

          **_Aluminum hurts…._**

          Starting the engine, Kagome slowly wove her way onto the deserted, dusty street again.

                                                                 ~*~*~*~

          The first time she heard the familiarly annoying-yet-pleasing-at-the-same-time sound, she frowned, but shrugged it off, thinking it was just a noise.

          The second time her stomach growled, Kagome knew she wasn't imagining them. It also came from Shippo, although it was a bit of a squeaky growl. 

          "No… wasn't yesterday enough?" she moaned.

          "We ate yesterday night, and it's 7 P.M. already. Everyone's naturally hungry at this hour."

          "Yeah… but a whole duffel bag worth of junk food?"

          "Some people are born with fast metalism. Anyways, what happened to your radio?"

          "It's called metabolism, and don't touch," she ordered when little fingers began to curl around a particularly frayed yellow wire, "The stupid, cheap button fell off. And remind me next time to never let you be in charge of the food rations. Now we have to do the whole process all over… AGAIN."

          "Is that a bad thing?"

          "Yes! We're stealing here!"

          "But it's food we're talking about…."

          "Food or no food, this is going against my very beliefs. We're only stealing here because we have to, not because we want to."

          "What if it's not in my beliefs? What if I want to steal willingly?"

          "… Don't play smart with me. You know you hate doing this."

          "Well, actually…."

          "Quiet! You're a little boy… I mean, fox… no… offspring… yeah, that's it, YOUNG offspring. You're supposed to be influential with everything around you, and if I say stealing is bad, then it's bad. It's not wrong to try growing up with some morals, you know."

          "What if…."

          "Too bad, and suck it up. Include it in your 'beliefs', whether you like it or not."

          Shippo pouted a bit at the declared command; he wasn't stealing… just, borrowing for a few hours so his digestion needs would be fully satisfied. "But we're not technically stealing, just borrowing some food. It'll come out, and they'll get their possessions once more."

          Kagome pulled the Lemon Face out of disgust and annoyance. "Shippo, don't be ignorant and nasty."

          "What? It's true! They will get their food back… almost 100% guaranteed!"

          "No, no… don't go there."

          "What I'm saying…."

          "Shush!"

          By this time, the two had entered the limits of another nameless town. Well, to them it was unnamed. They both kept bickering one issue over another; it was the type of debate where one topic would be linked with another, and the debate keeps restarting over and over. Kagome dubbed this type of conversation as the 'Never-Ending Talks', or 'NET' for short. "But…."

          "No! We are done talking about things coming out of the anus, stealing, and toilet industries. No more words about it! Oh look, let's work here."

          Kagome parked the car in front of another convenient store; they were so easy to pick off! "OK, you know the deal, right? I distract, you grab."

          "I thought I wasn't supposed to steal."

          "Stop being a smartbutt if you want to eat tonight," Kagome shot back in return, grinning when Shippo didn't reply after that comment, "Remember the signal."

          Nodding, he mumbled to himself, "Sure, when I steal, it's wrong. When Kagome steals, the whole world is right again."

                                                                     ~*~*~*~

          She entered the convenient store, prepared to carry out her part of the job. Upon entrance, she saw that it was fairly clean, something very rare nowadays. The aisles were positioned in straight rows, and the items were classified according to the Food Pyramid, even rarer. When they began their first few jobs, she usually directed Shippo to search for the health food section, but in most places they've jacked, the foods were carelessly thrown everywhere. It often took so long for him to find the vegetables and fruits that Kagome gave up and ordered him to grab the first thing that he saw, and that included junkies.

          **_Wow… fruits in ONE section and vegetables in the other. Nifty…._**

          "You're not supposed to be eating the food; you're supposed to be selling them!"

          A voice echoed throughout the small place, and she looked up to see who belonged to the voice. She saw two people, one male and female, standing at the counter. The man was capable of seeing her, but he was too busy talking to the other girl to notice. The voice came from the girl, and Kagome noticed that the girl was dressed in an army outfit. In other words, heavy, camouflaged coat, neatly pressed, camouflaged pants, camouflaged boots, and a smudged face. She looked very dirt-green and camouflaged, in her opinion.

          **_Army…?_**

          "Yeah, so what?" came the huffy and meant-to-be-witty reply from the male. It came out very dumb and ignorant.

          "Are you stupid?"

          "No, and can you STOP it with the name-calling?"

          "You're eating the products people buy!"

          "And your point…?"

          "People don't buy half-eaten grocery products, you dimwit."

          "First of all, I'm not a dimwit. And I'm checking for pesticide on the apples."

          "Please, spare me the hero act. I understand if you took a FEW apples… but a whole section…. I don't think so."

          "I'm risking my life at this very second, and all you can do is whine about what a pig I am?"

          There was a loud smacking of lips for the following proceeding moments.

          "I don't believe you."

          "Yeah, well, start believing, because I think I swallowed a worm. Ha! Now what would happen if a customer bought that very apple and started choking on the worm? Then she'd sue, and I'd be outta business."

          "You'd be on the floor, chucking or trying to gag yourself from the wiggly thing. Remember two year's ago, when we went to buy pumpkins for decorations for your store? Don't give me that look like you don't remember, because I remember crystal clear, and I'd bet you anything Inuyasha will remember, too. In fact, who CAN forget? So HA back to you!"

          "Hey, little girl! I'm not the one trying to enroll in the army, trying to prove that 'feminine power' rules all."

          A long, dramatic gasp escaped from the girl's mouth, and she stared at him, stunned. "Are you saying that my enrollment in the army was just to prove something? Are you calling me artificial?"

          "No, I'm just saying that manly females like you shouldn't be allowed to roam around the Earth without at least a leash to restrain your explosive tempers."

          "Oh, you've done it now. Get your butt over this counter, because I'm going to hurt you so bad, you sexist!"

          There was a ruffling sound, strangely familiar with cloth, and Kagome decided she didn't want to witness anything bloody or gruesome. (Actually, she didn't want to witness any more blood and gruesome pictures; she had enough to last her a lifetime.) She cleared her throat a bit louder than normal for their attention to divert to her.

          It worked, and the two people whipped their heads around. Rather, it was the girl who whipped her head around; the male just looked up. Grabbing the nearest half-eaten thing she could find, she stomped up to the front of the counter, letting rage slip over her features. "I was going to buy this… this banana! Along with the rest of the pack, too," she added when the two gave her quizzical looks, "And you… you consumed it, you baboon!"

          "No, I didn't! I'm allergic to bananas! It was him!"

          Turning away from the bewildered girl and at the boy, Kagome shook the banana in his face, yelling, "You marred the beautiful banana! I can't believe this! And to think I was going to eat it, too!"

          **_Beautiful banana? Oh jeez, now I'm really hallucinating._**

          "B-but miss…" he stuttered through a mouthful of chewed up apple bits, "There are more packs over there."

          "I want this pack!" she screamed, furious. Kagome walked over behind the counter and next to the male, forcing both to turn and not directly face the door.

          **_Now…._**

          She flailed her arms around and about wildly, giving on the full impression that she was truly angered at the unholy sight. Kagome saw a long piece of rope inching down the window and Shippo standing on the counter sill of the window.

          **_What? Why is he using Plan B when I cleared the doorway for him?_**

          But she didn't mind, as long as he did his part. She kept along with the charade for 15 minutes before finally tiring from her ranting. Darting a discreet glance at the window, she noticed that the string and Shippo were gone.

         **_Thank God…._**

          With a final act, she threw the banana at the two and stalked towards the door, grinning in triumph at yet another naïve store. 

          **_Yes! Success!_**

          As she neared the exit, her celebration was interrupted momentarily. Without so much as a warning, the door suddenly swung open, knocking over the neat pyramid of baby food behind it. Unfortunately, the pyramid was in front of her, and she jumped out of the way and into an aisle, hidden from the stranger, manager, girl, and the offending cans. "Look what I found," the newcomer said with a drawl.

          He held up Shippo by his tail, watching lazily as the child tried to chew his hand off.

          "Aw, is he lost? Are you lost… at this time, at 2200 hours? It's so late!" the girl had kneeled down just enough to stare at him at eye level.

          "I am NOT lost! I'm waiting PATIENTLY for my par- I mean, FRIEND, to return. And there's only 24 hours in a day. Everyone knows that but you."

          Shippo tried to free himself again by swatting at the guy's hand, but it was worthless. He only gripped the tail tighter and pounded him on the head. "Stop moving; it's annoying."

          "Wow… you used the word 'annoying'. That's a small word for demons, a big leap of vocabulary for you."

          "Shut up."

          "Wait… where'd you find him?" the girl interjected between the two.

          "Outside the window, stringing some cans from your shop, which, I may remember, is supposed to be watched over," the man said rather accusingly.

          "Hey! I was busy with another customer, and she was nuts! She threw bananas at Sango and me!"

          The guy nearly rolled his eyes, but settled for a snort. "She probably found the banana half-eaten."

          "Why does everyone always assume…."

          At that point, neither of the three was paying much attention to Shippo, who had noticed Kagome peeking between the cans. She mouthed, "Is the food outside?"

          He nodded slightly.

          **_OK… on the count of three… on… two… three!_**

          She took a step back… well, a few steps back, and prepared herself. Then, she ran forward a bit, picking up speed, and rammed her body against the heavy canned aisle. The shift caused the whole shelf to waver and topple over the group on the other side.

          "Holy son of a…" the boy holding Shippo had no time to finish his curse, as the cans fell on top of him like they did with the other two.

          "Run Shippo!" Kagome yelled, making her way towards the door.

          "He wasn't too far behind, since falling cans freed him from his captor. "Where's the bag?"

          "Underneath the window. I'll get it."

          As they broke free from the disastrous store, Shippo bounded over to the specified location and grabbed the black duffel bag. "Let's go," Kagome urged, already starting up the car. Having no time to waste, he jumped through the window rather than opening the door and getting inside the vehicle.

          Quickly, she jammed the stick into reverse and pressed on the accelerator, hard. The two had never been caught before, so it was natural that she felt jittery. Once righting the car and speeding away, Kagome breathed a bit before asking, "How many? Are you OK? Did you get hurt?"

          "Almost full, yes, and only little bruises around the tail."

          Smiling, she ruffled his head affectionately. "Good job," she complimented, nodding her head, "We nearly failed, but we didn't."

          "Thanks!"

          Just as she was beginning to relax and wallow in her gloating, her rearview mirror quickly fizzled the party mood.

          It was the same guy holding Shippo before, and he was chasing after them on foot. The sad thing was that he was catching up quickly.

          **_Gah… he's Superman in human form! I wonder if Kryptonite will work on him…._**

          "Kagome, uh, I hate to say this, but the grocery boy is after us," Shippo commented nervously.

          "How do you know he's the grocery boy?" Kagome asked through clenched teeth while pressing the pedal down further.

          "Because… uh, his green apron says, 'Hi, I'm C.S.'s grocery boy, and I'm happy to assist you!'."

          She wasn't paying attention; instead, Kagome focused on the approaching predator. She had reached her maximum speed on the speedometer, and it was definitely going to break if she kept it up any longer. Swerving, she drove down the broad, bumpy hill with him still trailing after her steadily. 

           The boy suddenly jumped, prepared to land on top of the car. Kagome, out of instinct, slammed on the brakes, causing everyone to jolt from their seats. Buyo nearly flew out the window during all of this. The only thing keeping him stable were his claws that were half an inch embedded into the leather interior of her seat.

          He landed a few 20-something feet away from her and turned around, ready to start the game all over again. Immediately, her shift stick was in reverse once more, and she slammed down on the accelerator pedal, not caring if it was going to break. 

          The two started all over again; this time, Kagome found herself on a road and leading into a very busy intersection. "Oh God!" she screamed as her car zoomed through the square. All the cars screeched to a halt, some within a mere inch from her hood, and honked angrily at her, swearing at her in their own language.

          She turned her head to see if the boy was still there. He was, and he was within ten feet of her.

          **_Uh-oh…._**

          "Kagome…."

          "…."

          "Uh, Kagome…" Shippo tried again, voice raised a bit anxiously.

          "Not now, Shippo. Can't you see that someone is…."

          "There's a wall!"

          Spinning her head, she realized it was indeed a wall, and in three seconds, her foot was furiously pressing on the brakes for a change. The car screeched horribly and still kept going.

          Throughout the car, a sickening crunch sounded. It took a few seconds for her to get over initial shock that she was alive. Then, the second realization hit her, and she groaned. "No…. The headlights are going to take forever to fix!"

          But her worries weren't enough; nope, because at that moment, the boy landed a few feet from the vehicle. "Get out of the car!" he yelled angrily. Obviously, running through traffic at night wasn't a fun activity for him.

          "… So, we're caught?" Shippo asked.

          There was another groan as Kagome hit her head against the center of the steering wheel… evidently, the horn was there, and she forgot about the object. The car started belting out the off-tune Mexican Fiesta, and the guy smirked slightly, although cringing at the horrid sound.

          **_Why me?_**

                                                                   ~*~*~*~

          "Watch the elbow!"

          "…."

          "Ow! Watch the tail!"

          The boy paid no attention to the two struggling in his hands; instead, he picked up his pace, ending up having to drag one by an arm and one by an extended furry tailbone.

          After a while, when he didn't answer, Kagome chided, "It's not nice to be silent when someone's talking to you."

          That snapped the boy's first and final nerve. He jerked both of them in front of him. "You steal food from our store, made me chase you halfway across town, and now you expect me to follow your wishes so you would be more comfortable as I drag you back?!?!" he all but screamed at them.

          Shippo whispered very loudly into Kagome's ear, "He doesn't like healthy exercise. A few 15 miles wouldn't hurt him, you know."

          Kagome nodded in agreement at his words. 15 miles wasn't so bad. In 30 minutes, she could do 1/3 of that number! That only meant… 2 ½ hours. Not too bad….

          The boy could only look at them incredulously for a moment before becoming extremely irritated again. Kagome swore if he was an animation character, he would certainly carry a big sweatdrop behind his head.

          Stomping along, he dragged the two again towards the store, muttering, "Make me do the dirty work…. There'd better be some big consequences for this…."

          Kagome and Shippo both seemed to be thinking what would happen, because they looked at each other and visibly gulped. They had never been caught before, so this was a first.

          Kagome hoped the manager there followed the foreign U.S. Constitution's Eighth Amendment: "No cruel and unusual punishment".

*  
  
*

A/N: Wow… the stars look bigger here. *shrugs* Oh well. HAHAHAHAHA!!! I'm finally done with Chapter 5! *does the happy dance* No worries, only had to wait three weeks. ^_^ Anyways, I want to tell you their jobs.

Inuyasha: grocery boy (T_T LMAO! I'm sorry, but I DO think it's funny….)

Sango: Army General

Miroku: Next chapter

Kouga: Manager (*snorts* Hehe… boss of Inuyasha. This looks interesting…. ^_~) 

Yes, I believe Inuyasha the Grocery Boy…. *LAUGHS* I can't help it! The sight of him in a green apron. *snickers*

I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it, which was a lot. However, I'm only making this happiness temporary. =)

Now that you've finished reading, I will do an advertisement: ChristyKay!

Her stories are: 'WhoDunnit', 'Why the Caged Bird Sings', and 'Fall of an Era'. Personally, the last one is my favorites; alas, another princess story, but VERY entertaining. ^_^ Waiting for Chapter 9… it was 'Blood Locus' all along, and I kept misspelling it. You'll like it, trust me! (HA! Thought I was going to advertise blood and gore, huh? Well, I don't like gutting. *Audience: WTF?!?! Why you writing about it?* Because I'm gifted in that section. ^_^ Well, you all think I do, anyways. Now, keep in mind, Chapter 6 won't be out for quite some time, you know, with the tests, Finals, and SOLS, along with projects. -_-* But I'm trying!

Next Chapter (Again, it will take some time.): Impressed by His Impressions (*snorts* Guess who's in it? Think purple perverted! ^_^ AH, alliteration, a wonderful tool for literature.)

4/16/03~ Hehe….

Wow! I was able to rewrite this so quickly! ^_^ Well, maybe it came out so quick because I just had to fix some small but noticeable grammatical mistakes. -_-* Yes, I do read my stories over and over again. And I catch some major mistakes. ^_^ Well, at least we all know I was paying attention! Oh yes, and I have a proposition for you. Now, keep in mind that you WILL get Chapter 6, but still…. *shrugs* I don't really know how long it's going to take me. So here is the deal: If I'm able to get to 100 reviews, then Chapter 6 will be able to come out later. ^_^ See, here's the reason why I'm posting this up. My original schedule to post up the next chapter was during Memorial weekend; that's like what, in two weeks? Or if I'm really busy, then it will probably be posted during the weekend after Memorial Day. So that's about three weeks from here. I also have SOLS coming up: NEXT WEEK. Yikes! So I'm going to be studying all next week. -_-* Oh rats…. Anyways, so here's how it goes: If I'm able to reach 100 reviews (Which is HIGHLY slim.), then Chapter 6 will come out probably in one to two weeks. ^_^ Now, I'm not FORCING you; I'm just saying the option is out there. ^_^ Hehe…. Alright? So there's the deal. I think I'll call it the Impossible Deal, since going from 74 to 100+ isn't too common for first time writers out there. =D

Anyways, I have more pressing matters now: Chapter 5. OK, so I understand how it could be a little confusing, so this little A/N here is going to be a wee bit longer than usual. *cough* I have to answer a review AND explain about Chapter 5. Oh, woe is me. ^_^ 

Chapter 5: Here's what happened in the chapter, to put it simply. (People, people, PAY attention to the story!) Yes, Shippo DID attack Kagome. Yes, he DID transform into a huge, maniacal dog and attempted to rip her to death. Yes, this all happened. Now, then, you're all probably wondering why she woke up suddenly in the middle of the night. Remember how she walked to the bathroom? Remember how Shippo appeared by the doorway? I remember including in there how she was dreaming about her past. OK, you know how she escaped from Tokyo because the hacker was after her? I KNOW I included in there somewhere that the first town that Kagome used as a hideout was Shippo's hometown. Get it? Let me put it this way in a BETTER way: The two parts of Chapter 4 were really a reminiscing dream she had about her past. She was dreaming about the time she hid out in her first hideout, Shippo's hometown. Get it? Good! Now, since the keyboard is becoming defective AGAIN, let's get on to my comment to one of the reviews.

**Kagura:** I appreciated your review. Thank you for saying that this chapter was great. But, I'm not too happy with one of your other comment. No offense or anything, (You're still considered a regular reviewer with a few other people on here.) but what did you mean by, "Without the gore, it was a lot less confusing and great."? I understand that Chapter 5 may have been a bit leading, but what did you mean that without the gore, the chapter was great? I have faith that my strongest point in writing is suspense so far, and I intend to keep the story that way. So could you please explain what you meant in that phrase? Thank you. (Yeah, I sound so formal and all, but I can't help it. That little statement really brought my spirit down. I mean, all this time I thought I was writing well and all…. T_T I wanted to write something different from the rest of the group and all…. Gah… I don't feel too happy. =() No, I'm not mad at you, and no, I'm not trying to get you to dislike me.

Now that the comment is over, let's see… what else should I talk about? Oh yeah! Hehe… what IS Miroku's job? ANSWER! MWAHAHAHAHA!!!! I want to thank ChristyKay for being the only one to answer my question. Grr… that sucks, since no one took the liberty to do as I asked. Hmmph! ^_^ J/K! But anyways, answer the question!

**What is Miroku's job?**

You'll never see this one coming…. Hehe, just like you never saw Inuyasha's job coming. Oh yeah, and the reason why Kouga didn't hit on Kagome the first time he saw her was…. Well, if someone stomped up to you and started shouting gibberish about beautiful bananas, would you take the time to start hitting on him/her? -_-* I don't think so. You'd most probably scream back or try to defend yourself from the person's wrath. 

Ah… we've come to an end to my extremely long review. Here's one more thing for you (Consider it as an early birthday gift!):****_Chapter 7~ As time relives itself, so does the fun._

Hehe… think about that. No really, THINK seriously for a moment about that phrase. Hopefully, you don't need to do some heavy thinking. ^_^ Bye! 

OK, so not yet, but one more thing: ChristyKay's story is actually called 'Blood LOTUS'. ^_^() I knew that. God… first locusts, then locus. Nghi, it's LOTUS. ^_^ I have it straight in my head now. 


	7. Chapter 6 Impressed by His Impression

                                                                                                         Blood-Stained

A/N: Read the A/N at the bottom of the page. ^_^

**Kagura:** T_T I'm so sorry for putting you down like that. *sniff* Can you forgive me? I just take a lot of things wrong. *sigh* Sorry! Gomen! Sinh loi! Je desole! (English, Japanese, Vietnamese, and French for all saying sorry.) _ Once again, I'm sorry for subtly accusing you of that. Damn… I wish I erased it now. Anyways, thank you for cleaning up my doubts. I'm now a happy and hungry girl!

In this week's news, I finally FINISHED the SOLS. *sigh* And I hope I pass. I mean, algebra wasn't as hard as I expected. God, the hardest one was civics, and I took that first. _ Oh, the agony…. I hope I did well and passed with advanced proficiency. ^_^ This A/N has been painfully cut in half by the author. I hope this gives you more space to read my story. But at the bottom…. MWAHAHAHAHA!!!

                                                    Chapter 6~ Impressed by His Impression

          "What's your name?"

          "…."

          "What's your family like?"

          "…."

          "Do you have any pets?"

          "…."

          "Are you ever going to answer?"

          "…."

          "Are you tired?"

          "…."

          "Hungry?"

          "Come to…."

          Kagome clamped a hand over Shippo's mouth, indicating that he should stop talking, and scowled slightly at the inviting question. Still, she said nothing. Behind her, the grocery boy was in a similar posture, except he slouched and folded his arms across his chest in a defiant manner. His facial features were also darkened considerably.

          The talkative girl waited a moment for an answer. Actually, the moment lasted for five minutes, and when she turned around from her leading spot, she saw the two still glaring at her. "OK. Alright! I get the point; you don't want to converse civilly with friendly strangers," she mumbled under breath, "How about you?"

          The response was a hard-earned glare.

          "Sheesh, what's your problem?"

          "My problem? MY problem? I have no problem! I'm only pissed that I have to be dragged off with you to watch over her!"

          "Would you rather be spending your time cleaning toilets?"

          "It would've been a hell more entertaining than walking for three hours!"

          "Remind me next time to not bail you out of cleaning duty!"

          "Remind ME next time to not take up mysterious offers by you!"

          "Fine!"

          "Fine!"

          The girl and boy now stood, facing each other; the invisible, terse electricity crackled in the air with Kagome and Shippo in between the fight. Deciding a bloody encounter was about to ensue, Kagome spoke up bravely, "I can see you're busy and all, so I'll just quietly slip out of the way."

          She barely turned around before a hand shout out and grabbed the end of her garment firmly. "Hell no," the boy snorted, "We didn't walk three miles just to get you and set you free. If I had it my way, you'd be serving a few more days."

          "Whatever happened to community service and random acts of kindness?" Kagome grumbled.

          "No acts for people who topple shelves on top of me," came the reply.

          "OK! What do you want? Money? Don't have any. Possessions? Threw them over a bridge due to a period of insanity. Pets? An obese cat that makes scratching posts out of your calves. The only things I have that are worth taking are the parts of my car. Which do you want? Door? Bumper? Window? I'd be honored to rip the desired object out and give it to you as a peace offering and as my ticket to freedom. If you give me a hammer, I'll do it in five days."

          The whole speech wasn't exactly a total lie.

           "Well," the boy began, considering the options, but the girl elbowed him in the ribs and shook her head slightly, refusing to give into the bribe.

           **_Aw…._**

           "Actually, we were going to have you clean up the story and damage as repayment…."

           "Kind of like having a personal slave."

           "… Well, if you can look at it that way. But since Kouga already cleaned up the mess, we've decided that another one of our friends, also a competitor in this town, could use help. He's been struggling for the past two years, too."

           "So you're passing me off like a vacuum?"

           "No!" the girl replied, shaking her head," But… even though you can't clean up Kouga's store, you still owe debt for the mess. He spent hours trying to reorganize his store again."

           "More like polishing off half the food," the grocery boy commented with a snicker, "So that's why he had the stomachache…."

           "Shut up," the girl hissed through clenched teeth.

           Kagome, however, didn't hear the girl because too busy sulking. "What if I don't want to help?"

           "Just pretend you do, because you're stuck with us for the next LONG week."

            And with the final statement signaling the end of the case, the girl marched forward again, calling over her shoulders, "Inuyasha, stop staring holes in the back of my head and let's go!"

                                                                         ~*~*~*~

            "…Oh! I just remembered! I can't stay here! I don't have a place to sleep."

           "In your car."

                                                                          ~*~*~*~

            "Oh, rats. I don't have clean clothes. I guess an out-of-town trip is needed."

            Go borrow someone's clothes."

                                                                            ~*~*~*~

             "I need a blanket to sleep comfortably."

              "It's going to be 37 degrees Celsius."

                                                                           ~*~*~*~

              "I need…."

               "Shut up and walk."

                                                                            ~*~*~*~

               Shippo and Kagome kept quiet after the last command. They were desperate to escape the situation, but not suicidal. They definitely did not want to see what he could do… after all, if he ran faster than a car on foot, what could he do with sheer strength?

                 "We're here," the girl announced cheerfully, looking at the store. Inuyasha also looked at the place, but with disinterest. The captives, however….

          They gawked.

           The store was painted seafoam green with chipped edges. All around the corners were cobwebs, clinging stubbornly and refusing to blow away with the humid draft. The windows themselves were stained brown, almost impossible to scrub away; the 'Open' sign was bent, twisted, and gnarled in every direction possible, too. But the sight that took their breaths away was the sign on top of the store, advertising proudly 'Mr. Twinkly's Ice Cream'.

         **_Whoa…._**

          "Uh-uh. Nope. NO way we're working there," Kagome refused with a foot stomp and hands folded, head shaking.

          "Who said anything about 'we'?" Inuyasha retorted, grabbing Shippo from her protective arms, "This kid here is too young to work. He's staying with Sango."

          "Wha- how… when," the girl replied, confused, "He's staying with me?"

          "See? She agrees with me. Besides, this town also has the kid and working rules. No kids younger than ten allowed to work. Obviously, he's no more than two."

          "Hey! I'm four! Four! Count my little fingers!"

          "Wait… what about my job? I have to watch over those klutzy new members, you know."

          "Pretend it's extra practice if you're ever called to watch over the colonel's son."

          "Hold on a minute! Why can't Shippo stay with me?" Kagome demanded in them middle of the dialogue.

          "Yeah, why?" Sango agreed.

          Inuyasha sighed irritatingly and said in a relatively slow voice, "Because.The.Runt.Will.Steal.The.Money."

          "No, I won't! Have a little faith in me!" Shippo immediately defended himself once he freed his mouth from Inuyasha's fist, "Give me a break here!"

          "Yeah, right. So you can go and cause the store to go bankrupt?"

          Sango interrupted the conversation and nodded, "Oh… OK. I'll do it, but you have to help me. I mean, my schedule is so busy and all, and I just can't afford to watch over the kid 2400 hours a day."

          "For crying out loud, there's 24 hours in day! Not 2400! If there was 2400 hours, we'd only live about one year before we die!"

          She ignored his little outburst and waited expectantly for the response. When she saw Inuyasha's mouth open to protest indignantly, she quickly added in a low whisper, "Or…." The rest of the words were mumbled, but whatever it was, his mouth clamped up and he agreed reluctantly.

          The two began to sort out their schedule, and when it came down to the last day, Inuyasha ultimately ended up having to keep Shippo for the extra day. "Oh, the joy," he muttered darkly, looking down at the child who was trying to chew his hand off.

          "Hey! For the love of- TURN AROUND!"

          "Would you stop shouting?" he yelled back, equally furious about the noise.

          "Well, I wouldn't have been shouting if you guys hadn't ignored me for the last 15 minutes!" Kagome raged.

          "What do you need?" Sango interrupted, pleasant smile plastered on her face.

          "I won't let you confiscate Shippo from me! It's not fair, and you know it!"

          "We're not 'confiscating' him, stupid."

          "I am not stupid!"

          "Relax, OK? We're merely watching over him like a hawk until you finish your sentence."

          "I am not some thing you can tuck under your arms, you guys. Has anyone considered my feelings and what I think? Shouldn't I have a say in this?" Shippo asked out loud exasperatedly.

          All three stopped bickering and looked down at him for a second. Then the time passed by, and they all resumed the fighting, with one not being able to tear herself from his side and the other two not being able to tear their eyes from him.

          "You're trying to split up, aren't you?" Kagome accused, jabbing a finger in their general direction.

          "No kidding. You'd probably steal again if we gave the kid to you. And then you'd probably run off, too."

          "I'm not 'the kid'; I have a name, and it's Shippo to you, mister."

          "What would we want from a measly ice cream store?"

           "Considering the factor that it's probably around late summer and it's freakin' hot outside, I'd have to say that the store would make a lot of money. So in conclusion, the cash register," Sango said automatically.

           "I don't steal money; I steal food, the edible stuff."

            "Kagome, don't you remember…."

            "What?" she suddenly yelled, "I didn't hear your question, Shippo. Sorry, so my answer to that question is nope. I don't remember anything."

            "But…."

             "I answered your question, so no."

             Shippo scowled and turned back haughtily to his fruitless yet valiant attempt in trying to chew himself to freedom.

             "Ha! So you steal money, too!"

             "Are you deaf? I just denied that accusation a minute ago!"

             "But right after you denied it, Shippo came in with a memory of something. Obviously, it must have had something to do with the current situation, so we can infer it's about stealing, which was the topic. But then you cut it off, denying it. Denying it only makes it worse added to the fact that it makes it seem as if you were bad at lying. So therefore, we can make an educational guess that you DO steal money," 

              Before either could remark at Sango's psychological, theoretical comment, the rusted doors leading into the ice cream shop swung open with ferocity and slammed against the back wall, shaking the store a bit. "WHAT is going on? I told you, NO more mimes in front of the shop! You make too much noise and…. Oh, it's just you."

             Forgetting the dragging, petty fight, Sango huffed, "'Oh'?!?! Is that the best you can come up with to me?!?! I was away for two months! TWO! Even Inuyasha gave me a better 'Welcome Back' grunt, and he was half-asleep at that time!"

             "So you were expecting a party?" the new stranger guessed dryly.

          "Something along the lines of that. I mean, I HAVE been doing combat battles. Note the reason why I look disgruntled."

          **_And they say kids don't have manners in the new generation… try boys don't have manners. My God, he's just as bad as Mr. I'm-Confiscating-Shippo-Because-You-Can't-Handle-the-Responsibility. Hmmph…. _**

         "Fine. Here's your second set of 'Welcomes'," he said, grabbing Sango and pulling her into a hug while flashing her a grin simultaneously.

         **_…._**

          The thought wasn't even formed in Kagome's head when she pushed away. Angrily, Sango cuffed him by the ear, hard, and began to beat him on the head with her other hand, like what Inuyasha would do to Shippo. "You jerk! I didn't want a hug! What kind of freebie is that?!?! I wanted free ice cream…."

          As the trio continued to observe the unfair match, Shippo stopped gnawing on Inuyasha's hand for just a moment and said, awestruck, "She's not violent like this all the time, is she?" 

          "Nah… it's always been like that for Miroku. Sango used to beat him up when she was little for some crayons and all that crap. I guess it's tradition he must have a bruise somewhere at the end of each day. Serves him right, too; he's a cheap guy. We all think he's a masochist, though," he replied, watching the scene with a complete look of boredom on his face.

          **_Masochist, eh…._**

          Kagome had to admit that she was slightly impressed with Sango's beating. She had never really witnessed a fight where the girl would end up winning.

          Eventually, Miroku, who lost complete feeling in his skull, produced two coupons from his pocket. "Here…" he mumbled, dizzy.

          Sango grabbed them and promptly dropped the head onto the cement pavement. "Thanks!" she squealed enthusiastically, "You don't know how much this means to me! This is the best 'Return Home' gift ever!"

          **_Wow… an avid eater._**

          "How many times has she done that?"

          "In her whole lifetime, or when Miroku ended up receiving the store?"

          "The store."

          "Not too many… about five or six times. Amazing he didn't need plastic surgery yet."

          Shippo nodded in agreement as Sango helped the boy get up. "Ow… it hurts, you know," he complained, leaning against her heavily, "Why did you beat me up? I was going to give them to you."

          "Your fault for not giving me the gift straight out," she chided, "It would have saved you two or three bruises."

          She led Miroku slowly down to where the other three were standing. "Sorry for the wait," she apologized, "I had to get a few possessions back from him, so I threw a few playful punches."

          **_Playful?_**

          "Anyways, I want you to meet your new boss: Miroku. He owns the ice cream store and stuff, so you can start whenever he wants you to."

          Miroku looked up, beginning to protest, but he saw Kagome and immediately shut his mouth, smiling. "Hello, new assistant! Sango has once again found another coworker for me!"

          Immediately, Kagome remembered the original fight before he came in and returned to sulking. "Howdy to you, too. Let's just start the shift so it can end earlier and I can go home into my car."

          He blinked at the positively negative attitude surrounding her as she shuffled past him and into the store before saying, "She took lessons on how to make friends from Inuyasha before coming here, right?"

          Poor boy received another hit on the head with a free hand. "I'm not THAT antisocial," Inuyasha grumbled, stomping towards the direction of the grocery story. "Shitto, or whatever you name is, STOP using my hand as a pacifier and follow Sango. I have to go do 'work', or the stupid ass of a manager is going to make me clean the toilet."

          Shippo was flung into the air and landed in front of the girl's shoes. Standing up and brushing away stray dirt on his clothes, he shouted at the retreating back, "I don't need a pacific anymore! I'm four, turning five! FIVE! And it's SHIPPO, not-"  
  


                                                                      ~*~*~*~

          "OK. Now, to turn on the milkshake machine, you press this button. To turn it off, press that button- you got that?" Miroku asked after a brief demonstration.

          "Uh… yeah," Kagome replied with a hint of know-it-all in her voice. How hard was it to work two buttons? Apparently, anyone could press one or the other.

          He shrugged nonchalantly at her response. The assistant was going to find out how to use the machine kinetically, anyways. "And the ice cream thing… well, that's self-explanatory."

          "Uh-huh."

          Was she even paying attention? Maybe she had ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)….

          "If there are any questions…?"

          "Yeah… do you get customers?" Kagome asked, staring critically at the massive amount of dust collected in the air, especially on the tables. 

          "How else do you think I get the financial capital?"

          Nodding, Kagome had looked away, deep in thought. There were really two choices of customers in mind: 1) really rare customers who love ice cream, or 2) a lot of kids who REALLY don't mind the ice cream's store appearance. She would've accepted it when he said he had a lot of customers, but that was only if the place was spotless shiny. Sadly, the store was nowhere near decent clean, and the air was invaded with unknown horrors of particles and dust bunnies.

          What was Kagome's job? Her job was to tend to the customers, but the biggest one for her was to tidy up the place.

          The week would prove to be long.

                                                                    ~*~*~*~

          Mr. Twinkly's Ice Cream wasn't doing very hot on her first impression list. It took her a total of 15 minutes to unload the overfilled dishes… that is, after she sprayed disinfectant over the rubber gloves. (Now, since she didn't want to touch the green, elastic gloves, it took her another ten minutes to successfully erase the 'visible' germs.) After that, Kagome went on to wash, later, and rinse the dishes.

          One hour later, she had gone through 1/3 of the dirty pile, four sponges, and seven or eight soap bottles. "How many dishes does he have?" she grumbled, scrubbing furiously.

          **_God… I think he collects the dishes from elsewhere and brings them here. No wonder there are all sorts of miscellaneous plates…._**

          Giving up on a particular nasty ketchup stain, she threw the sponge into the soap-filled sink and dropped the plate along, too. "OK, on tomorrow's list, I will have to go and finish the rest of the pile," she said firmly but grimly.

          The next task to do was to clean the window. There was only one, and she thanked God for that. But the window was about nine feet high and wide and was impeccably dirtier than a pig with three-week's worth of mud crusted onto its skin. This job, which should've taken about 30 minutes for her to do in a normal store, proved to be a little more challenging than that.

          Kagome rummaged through the cabinet under the sink and came up with a pail. With no time wasting, she dunked it under the soapy water and fished for the fallen sponge.

          **_Get ready to wrestle with this…._**

          And so began the fight for a clear, see-through window. She scrubbed everywhere with a relatively fast speed and high determination, but the window seemed to be permanently etched with the brown… thing. So she tried another tactic; Kagome scoured in one spot for what seemed like decades before stopping and leaning back to see her progress.

          In the center for all her scrubbing's worth, a miniscule hole, the size of a radius of a golf ball, filtered through light. "Has the store even been visited by a health inspector?" she gritted through her teeth. But still, she was proud. The little, clean hole meant that she just had to scrub like that for the rest of the window. She started for the spot next to the hole.

          "How's the progress coming along?"

          "Oh, just great. I'm attempting to go where no human would even consider going: washing the window."

          Miroku smiled a little and said in a knowledgeable tone, "Yeah… she's a bit dirty, huh?"

          "Lower than the lowest of understatements. And are you sure you get customers?" Kagome demanded, hurling the sponge into the pail of water next to her. She was becoming tired of the job already.

          He nodded very confidently. "You just missed the rush hour of the store."

          **_Yeah, right._**

          "Do you need anything?"

          "Yeah. Can I leave?"

          "I'm sorry, but nope."

          "Well, what's stopping me from exiting that door right next to my body?"

          "Because you have a debt to pay, if I recall from my conversation with Sango on the phone correctly."

          "So…."

          "And if you finish your debt for the next three weeks, your tainted criminal record will be erased."

          Kagome never thought of that; she had a criminal record now. Internally groaning, she felt sick at the thought of her fingerprints and picture neatly tucked away in a folder that was probably amongst other criminal records with REAL crimes, like murder and rape. "Wait… I thought I only had to stay here for one week!"

          "One week for the debt, and another two for the clean record."

          "…."

          "I'll take it you understand?"

          She hated being cornered!

          **_But why should I worry about my record?_**

          As Kagome opened her mouth to shoot down the three-week offer, another thought entered her mind.

          **_Criminal record._**

          She had a criminal record.

          It was located on top security files and folders, almost impossible to obtain.

          Criminal records listed her crime, the time committed, and….

          **_The place._**

          Of course, back to the security folders, it was impossible to get her file… almost.

          **_Unless…._**

          The hacker was able to do that without getting caught- highly slim, but an accomplishable feat. If he was able to get into her account, forcing her to cut off her cache and her cell phone, he was probably able to get….

          This did not suit well with Kagome.

          Time was also important to this. How long until he was able to successfully penetrate the codes and security system?

          **_What are the chances of him finding me tonight?_**

          "Assistant? Hello?" Miroku waved a hand in front of her face.

          Shaking out of her stupor, Kagome blinked for a few moments. Her eyes unglazed and darted around wildly, foreign to the surrounding for a second. "Huh? What? Oh yeah, and the name's Kagome."

          "You fine? You were half-asleep a minute ago."

          "Yeah… anyways, what were we talking about?"

          "The proposition. If you did three week's work here, your criminal record is erased."

          Kagome didn't want to do it. "You know, just because the debt is weighing on me doesn't mean that I can't go physically."

          Miroku suddenly wore a smug grin. "That's why we had the local police scatter throughout the boundaries of the town. This is your punishment that we, the plaintiff, have come up with."

          Her eyes popped open wide, and she stared at him for a full, speechless minute. "WHAT?!?!" she screeched, suddenly finding her voice, "You're holding me hostage in this stupid town?!?!"

          "… Not exactly. You're staying here until the end of the first week. Then you're free to go and flit around as you please. But personally, I would stay for the three weeks."

          Kagome stared at him and asked, mystified, "Why?"

          "Well… because if I were on parole, I'd try to get out of it as soon as possible."

          "I'm not on parole; I'm free from jail."

          "Ah, that's where you're wrong. You would stay in the jail for up to two weeks for stealing. It's a bit harsh, but that's how it goes. The original intent was to let you stay in there for two weeks until you were able to pay back the damages done or set you on parole. They opted for the second choice instead."

          "So? What's the difference between being freed and being on parole?"

          Miroku fumbled and patted around his pocket apron until he came up with a piece of paper. "This is your folder number here. And here is your ID here. You have to go to the police and present this to them…."

          "Because they're monitoring me," Kagome finished, the whole situation dawning on her.

          "Yep," he said with a nod of a head. Miroku was now next to her, leaning in so she could see. "In other words, you HAVE to come back to this town to meet with the police for three months every week."

          "It's like binding me to this place."

          "Yes, and if you DON'T return, they'll come after you."

          Kagome fell silent, thinking about her choices. If she did the three-month/parole plan thing, she would be stuck visiting the police 15 times. If she did the three-week thing and stayed in one place….

          She didn't want to think about that.

          But… the three-month parole…. Suddenly, it didn't look too appealing as a paranoid thought struck her.

          **_The guy… he will be able to find me in three months… when I'm in the same town. And it will be guaranteed that he WILL find me…._**

          He had 15 chances to meet with her in the town….

          **_Too many chances…._**

          On the other hand, if Kagome stayed for three weeks, they parole would be gone and she could go as far as she pleased… not to mention her record erased.

          Frankly, one week to go somewhere and travel back to the same town wasn't exactly a bright thing to do.

          "Since we didn't like the parole idea for some reason, we decided to consult with the judge, the one who made the decision, and came up with a plan: you would stay for three weeks and do service for me," Miroku finished saying, oblivious to his daydreaming employee.

          "When I'm staying here, do I visit the police for the three weeks?" she asked distractedly.

          He blinked, a bit surprised the girl drew up such a quick and spontaneous conclusion. Nevertheless, she was right. "Wow, you're pretty sharp. Yep! You were let out on parole, so you still have to visit, even though we made some revisions to the parole."

          "I'll do it," she said with a nod of her head. If she learned anything from the past few months, it was to jump to the shortcut. Of course, staying in one place while running away wasn't a good thing, but running away and coming back to the same town like a collar around her neck wasn't exactly too much of a good plan, either. In fact, it was a very dumb thing to do.

          "Great! I'll inform the police and Sango of your decision!" he replied, ecstatic that he was able to persuade her to change her mind so quickly. He turned around and headed for the phone next to the register.

          As he passed by her along the way, his hand accidentally passed up against the far left of her butt.

                                                                           ~*~*~*~

          The first time it happened, Kagome disregarded it as a small, innocent brush, kind of like when someone swung his/her arms around casually and ended up smacking someone in the face. When he pushed her backwards into the broom closet, demanding she look for the extra bar of soap for the bathroom, she became suspicious. His hands had been directly pressed against her breasts when he 'nudged' her. But still, she ignored it, thinking Miroku liked to align things, like his hands. She couldn't help but feel her shoulders were an alternate choice besides her non-visible cleavage, though.

          The third time, Kagome snapped. She KNEW she wasn't imagining it when he ushered her to the milkshake machine. The thing was, he was pushing her… by the butt.

          **_Oh God…._**

          "Alright! Stop it!"

          "What?" he asked, halting to a stop. He played a very confused boy very convincingly. 

          "Stop molesting me. Do NOT touch me, and if you EVER get within my Private Bubble…" Kagome warned.

          "What Private Bubble? What are you talking about?"

          "THIS is how far my Private Bubble extends," she announced, sticking out her arm, "If you go within the bubble…."

          "Huh?" Miroku was confused by now.

          "Don't.Touch.Me," Kagome gritted through the simplified version of her warning, "If you do… don't even go there."

          "But I was guiding you into the direction…."

          "The store is a square, and it's two feet away from me. I can also see clearly that it's behind the counter. I'm not blind, OK?"

          "You don't have to bite my head off. I'm just trying to help, but I can see you're holding a fear of being touched."

          "Try harassed."

          "What?"

          "That's right! You heard me," Kagome accused out loud.

          Miroku huffed indignantly. "I don't 'harass'! Are you calling me some sort of… of pervert?"

          Kagome stopped breathing fire for a minute and thought about what he just said. "… Actually, I was going to say sexual harasser, but that works, too."

          "Now wait a…."

          "What was so important here that you dragged me to the machine?" she interrupted, not wanting to hear his next words.

          He stopped talking about 'it', much to her delight, and brightened at the question. "Oh yeah! The reason why I ushered you here was because I want to try a little role-playing."

          **_What?_**

          "This is an ice cream shop, not theater class or an institution that helps the emotionally scarred."

          "Yes, but this is supposed to be a test to see if you were paying attention to my tour. It's really easy, and I can assure you that you'll pass without a blink of an eye."

          "…."

          "So, are you ready? I'll be the customer, and you be… well, your profession."

          "Remember, no…."

          "Yeah, yeah, the bubble thing. Don't worry, I won't pop it," he said rather dully while exiting the store.

          A moment later, Miroku entered the room, fake smile plastered on his face. "Hello! Wel…."

          "No, no, no, no! You're doing it all wrong! You have to wait for the customer to come up to the counter."

          "OK…."

          "Let's try this again."

          Kagome KNEW the shift was going to take forever now.

                                                                            ~*~*~*~

          "No! Were you paying attention? You…."

          "We've been at this for three hours, and it's 8:30 P.M. My shift is over," Kagome interrupted, "I'm tired, cranky, and sore from standing all day. If you want something, just ORDER!"

          Miroku was taken aback at the erupted comment before shaking his head. "No," he said, "You got the 'self-confident in my work' vibe going, but your courtesy needs to drastically improve if you want to make it in the ice cream world."

          "I don't think I intend to scoop ice cream and wear cone hats for a living."

          "If you want to make it through the three weeks, then."

          She didn't know which would satisfy her craving right now: clobbering Miroku on the head with her bare fists, or clobbering him on the head with an ice cream scooper, which, by the way, is currently being used as a grip device in her left hand.

          **_All it takes is five inches from his head…._**

          "Anyways, since you're so 'eager' to get home and it's your first day, I'll just order a milkshake."

          Kagome nodded and started for the process.

          **_Ice cream…._**

          As she prepared everything, she noticed how the fine hairs on her back stood up… just like they do when someone or something was staring at her.

          "What?" she cried, turning away from the milkshake machine once she pressed 'on' and facing Miroku with her hands on her hips.

          "Nothing," he replied defensively, "I didn't touch you at all!"

          "Why are you staring at me?"

          "Is it wrong for a manager to watch over his employee's action?"

          Not able to find a comment to shoot back, Kagome fumed, shooting a dark glare in his face. His stare was very uncomfortable, and she was beginning to fidget a little.

          **_Just turn around…._**

          And she did just that.

          When the cup was filled, Kagome pressed the 'off' button.

          The thing was, it didn't stop.

          In that sense, it meant the machine was broken and kept spitting out vanilla-flavored milkshake. Soon, the cup overflowed and began to weaken under the sticky pressure, since it WAS a paper cup after all.

          Kagome continuously pressed the 'off' button, but when it didn't seem to work, she began to slam her palm against it. "Um… Miroku," she grunted, "I think your machine's broken."

          If she had looked behind her, she would have noticed his little grin.

          **_Close…._**

          "Should have been listening," he said with a shake of his head, "I told you to hold down the red button."

          She did that, and it increased the flow. "Nope, that's wrong!"

          Poor Kagome was becoming sticky, and she just hated the feeling. "Get over here and help me!"

          "It's supposed to work," Miroku grumbled, walking behind the counter. He swatted Kagome's hands away from the nozzle, where the milkshake was spurting from, and earned a swat in the head. "Look at this! You lied to me," she hissed, "Thanks for playing the stupid trick on me!"

          "It's not a joke! Holding down the red button is supposed to stop the flow altogether," he grumbled again, holding the red button down.

          "Don't!" she started to yell, but it was too late. This time, the drink violently burst forth from the hole, splashing the two all over. Miroku waited about 15 seconds before getting the idea to release his hold on the button and putting both hands to cover up the nozzle.

          "Pull the plug," he directed, trying to control the direction of the spraying milkshake away from his face.

          As Kagome leaned behind the machine and grasped the rubber plug, she pulled. A spark of blue-white lit up for a few seconds before disappearing. She pulled back with the plug in her hand, a triumphant smile on her face to show the plug was no longer in the outlet… and nearly fell back.

          The milkshake now sprayed in a jet, and it looked like it hurt, since Miroku winced every time it showered his arm.

          "Did you unplug the thing?" he yelled over the spraying.

          There was no describing the look on his face as she slowly held up the plug.

          "Oh…" he mumbled, eyes bulging at the sight, "That is NOT good."

          "You think?" Kagome commented sarcastically.

          Miroku ignored her words and commanded, "Come help me carry this junk."

          Sighing, she carefully sidled up next to the machine and hooked her fingers on its edges. "Ready," she said, nodding.

          He let go of the nozzle and began to hook his hands on the other edge. Together, they both heaved as they attempted to lift the incredibly big and heavy machine.

          The attempt didn't last long with Miroku's temporarily stinging arm and Kagome's not-too-much strength. 

          **_OK…._**

          "I knew the machine was a piece of crap…" he muttered under his breath, "What to do… what to do…."

          Kagome was also thinking and closed her eyes for encouragement. She couldn't think when there was a raving machine in front of her. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open, and she snapped her fingers. "Don't worry, Mr. Miroku Manager, I know EXACTLY how to stop the idiotic piece of steel."

          He looked as she ran past him and into the broom closet, which was highly unusual. "No, Kagome, we're not going to hide in the closet until the machine dies down…" he called after her. When she gave no answer, he shrugged, thinking she was already under the toilet rolls, and closed his eyes for some more deep thinking.

          Out of nowhere, a sickening crunch of steel sounded, followed by a light spray of milkshake on his face. Wiping away at his eyes, he found Kagome pummeling the machine with a baseball bat. "Die…" she grunted heavily, "You… old… thing… die!"

          Miroku backed away timidly as he saw her feeble brute strength come into play. A few minutes after, he could barely recognize his own machine, except for the nozzle still drizzling.

          **_Wow… great stress reliever!_**

          She stepped back to admire her handiwork while he, on the other hand, stepped back in horror. "So… now that I've stopped it from becoming a walking monster, can I go now?"

          "That cost me a good 10,000 YENS!"

                                                                              ~*~*~*~

*  
  
*

A/N: *sigh* Finished! SOLS are done with me, but school is not. ^_^() I hope you liked the no-gore chapter… again. It will be the last happy/dandy chapter for the story's plot. *evil grin*

Anyways, I just wanted to say that Chapter 7 will DEFINITELY come out around June 20. I have to do Finals and Community Service. -_-* Blech… I'm sorry…. I MUST get A's because the Finals are worth a freakin' 25% of my fourth quarter grade! @_@ But… if I get to 100 reviews for this chapter, it will come out sooner…. *wink wink* 

Next Chapter: Patterns~ _As time goes on and becomes routine, she will relieve the night's fun._

Just a little hint. =) Now, ANOTHER advertisement! Her penname is Maiden of the Moon, and she wrote A LOT of stories. @_@ But I've read one of her stories so far, and it's another Cinderella story! But don't run away! What if Kagome and Inuyasha met, but she left hurriedly, leaving a glass slipper behind? But… what if Kikyo could fit the shoe? T_T Ugh… her ugly, big, stinky feet…. Poor Kagome. ^_^ I'm waiting for the next chapter, and the good thing is that whenever you're waiting for me to update, you can read her story because she updates daily! It's good, TRUST me. Why advertise if you don't like? ^_^ (Yes, it's romance, and there's nothing scary, except for Kikyo herself. ^_^)

  
Now, I'm off to go read stories, and I hope everyone likes this chapter!

Ah, there's nothing as classic as the 'Attack of the Milkshake Machine, Pt. III'. XD Oh boy, I'm loving this already….

6/07/03~ Fixed….

Hey, everyone. *smiles weakly* I'm back from ballet, and my body hurts. I've just done some minor fixing, but I doubt any of you guys will see the difference.

Anyways, I want to thank everyone who was enthusiastic about the deal and went straight ahead in helping me reach 100. It just puts a smile on my face that you guys are eager to read the next chapter.

Yes, I still remember my deal; if I get to 100, then the next chapter will come out on June 20th. However, I am really sorry for this, but I can't do that. 

Apart from finals coming up this week, which is about to stress me beyond belief, I'm doubting about the course of the story. This means that I can't seem to write a sentence of the next chapter without thinking, "Is this going to capture the audience's attention?" or "Is this the way they expected?"

I know that some of you received a review from me and heard me talk a lot about this, and I'm really sorry for clogging up your time. Fortunately, they didn't go and blast my head off for being such a coconut. (My Insult of the Month.)

You are all probably thinking, "What kind of excuse is this? Why would she be doubting the course of the story? I love the story!" OK… maybe not the 'I love the story' (Glad to see I still have my humor in check….), but the first two are probably what you're thinking. Well, you see, I received my first flame for my first story.

….

Yeah, ouch is the word. For the past four days and three nights, I was feeling very put-down that someone could just so bluntly say, "I'm sorry, but your story sucks and you wasted my time." This is, of course, the summarized version of what I see behind those constructed words. There weren't any constructive criticism, and it really hurt me. Many of my live friends and people online have told me constantly to stop worrying over it, and I'm not worried. What brought me down was the flame itself. I read everyone's reviews, and I think a lot of what you say; if you said you liked it, then it brought a smile to my face, knowing that you enjoyed it. But when someone emails me, saying that it was a waste of his/her time, that just makes me want to take off the story. *ducks chairs* I'm not doing it, but I'm just using that as an example. 

So this is why I can't have Chapter 7 out by this weekend or the next. =( I feel so obliged to bring out the next chapter that must meet what you guys expect, and not just quality. I mean, from that flame, the reviewer said she felt the story stray a little. In that sense, I feel obliged to write out more gore and horror and stalking for EVERY.SINGLE.CHAPTER. @_@ No offense, who here wants to read intestine splats every chapter? Please answer the question if you review this, which you don't have to.

Please be patient until June 20th; there's only a few more days left. ^_~ I will try to get it out by June 20th, too. Is anyone mad at me for backing out on the deal? Once again, I'm really sorry for having to do this, but I feel that I have to put effort into this chapter, and a weekend might not be enough.

Thanks to the following people who have endured my depression stage:

**Kitten Kisses:** I'm your friend? Thanks! *does the happy dance*

**Maiden of the Moon:** Hehe… I'm returning the favor, no? Thanks again for the cookbook… now, how to make garlic cupcakes…. ^_~ You've helped me SO much through this little stage. =) Thanks a lot!

**ChristyKay:** I think you're the only one who reviews my story for talking… like me. ^_^ Remember, though, we must add SOMETHING to the reviews about your stories… that way, it won't sound like a forum. Hehe… thanks for cheering me up. Man, I'm glad someone here can relate to how I feel. =(

**Himiko:** I know, I know, she hasn't read my story yet. But if she did, this here is just to thank her for reading my novel-sized reviews talking about flames. She got one, too, so I decided to make her suffer along with everyone else. ^_~ Thanks for reading my novel reviews… if you did.

**EmeraldDragon:** OK, I know she hasn't read my story, but this is just for her, because I also emailed her, talking about my sadness.

OK… there are more people; I just KNOW it! But I don't remember much, so sorry. If I forgot, you can tell me, and I'll thank you next chapter.

On the bright side, I'm getting better! People with their support have really turned my scorched ego into a mildly burnt one. ^_^ I'm ready to start working SLOWLY again… so yeah, that could be a problem, too. Once again, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ENDURING MY LITTLE DEPRESSION! 

P.S. Has anyone seen Kirby? He disappeared a while ago…. o_0 Where in the World is Kirby? (LMAO… haha…. XD)

(Somewhere in England… in the Buckingham Palace….)

(-_0) 

Thank you for your help through the nasty flame's effect/harshness, which I 'affectionately' call it FEH.

**^_^**


	8. Chapter 7 Patterns

                                                                                                         Blood-Stained

A/N: **READ**A/N at the bottom of page. Sorry for the extremely long wait…. T_T 

**ChristyKay:** I'm so, so sorry for rushing you like that. I didn't mean to sound childish or anything. I was just really impatiently curious as to why you were slacking off… like moi. ^_~ It's OK if you don't want to write. ~*hug*~ You can wait until the crisis is over with your life. *sad*

On with the fiction! To ChristyKay: Are you still feeling blue? Here… I hope this will make up for the sadness! ^_^ 

**_I dedicate this chapter to ChristyKay and her troubled times… or mid-life crisis… whichever comes first._**

Don't worry… be happy…. =) Nice song, eh? Bah… too long of an A/N… just read the bottom, OK? *pleads*

                                                                                 Chapter 7~ Patterns

            She stared at the wooden dot of the 100% pine table (That was what the tag underneath the table had claimed.), dressed in comfortable, gray slacks. They were Sango's, of course, and she couldn't imagine why that girl would be kind enough to lend a snippy person a fresh batch of clothes and usage of a bathroom…. After all, she was supposed to be the "bitchy" one here, as Inuyasha had nicely put it during a certain break over at the ice cream store….

           Oh yeah, she had trudged up three flights of stairs (The elevator wasn't working.) while dripping everywhere. When Kagome had reached the apartment, she was now a sticky person… literally. Fat drops of white had hardened into some form of crystallized sugar.

**_            Well, pity can get you a few, good things in life…. Hehe…._**

            A cup of tea replaced the hypnotizing, wooden dot, and she glanced up to see Sango offering it to her, a placid smile stretched across her face like the next Berlin Wall. Seeing the slight scowl at her cheeriness, she immediately replaced the grin with a tired face. "Just wondering if you would warm up… don't bite me, please," she mumbled.

            "Well, no one can be this happy at midnight," Kagome replied back, twice as darkly. But, as a semi-retribution for her evil comments (Hey, she was mean, but not without conscience… most of the time.), she took the mug and began to sip delicately, since the lemon brew was just boiled.

            Needless to say, a long, tense silence filled between the two…. Kagome could just imagine the suffocation she was going through.

            "So…" Sango cleared her throat before beginning again. "Is there anything you want to talk about?"

            Expecting some sort of prying question out of her, Kagome countered, "What kind of talking are you suggesting?"

            "Oh, family…."

            Her eyes bulged a bit unnaturally.

            "Friends…."

            She twitched a bit involuntarily.

            "Or even that stalking boyfriend of yours…."

            At the last part mentioned, Kagome really choked on her tea, which she was half-enjoying, too. Coughing, she quickly put up the sleeves to her mouth in an attempt to prevent saliva from flying all over the place. 'What?" she asked weakly, still hacking away.

**_            H-how did she find out…? Not boyfriend, though…! Never in a million years…._**

            Sango's eyes had widened, and she rushed over to whack Kagome's back to clear the tube. "I was kidding… you know, HA-HA-HA? It was a joke," she explained meekly.

            Finding her voice to speak again, Kagome stood up suddenly, an angry spark within her eye. As she spoke each word precisely, it was transparent that she was restraining her active temper. "It wasn't very funny."

            "I'm sor…."

            "Yeah, right. Can we drop this… this thing we're talking about, whatever it was?"

            Deciding that boyfriend was a touchy matter, Sango nodded firmly and dallied onto other topics…, which meant that she was nervous. And when she was nervous, she started spurting out random facts. "Well, I'm 24 years old, and I work for the AYHC, or more commonly, in the big, dark, scary building next to the cotton candy factory somewhere in the town."

            Kagome wanted to laugh at the descriptions used to accentuate the building next to a candy store. 

**_            Scary? Scary? I haven't seen scary… I've seen terrified._**

            "… And I also like to collect wooden, beaver collections. What about you?"

            "Do I have to answer?"

            "No, not if you don't want to… it's entirely optional, since this is a conversation made up of purely fun and giggles."

            "I have no comments."

            Sango found it hard to chat with a conversation killer.

            "Why don't I just bring Shippo home today?" Kagome asked, staring at the brown depths of the tea remnants. "It's late, and I'm tired… really tired. You have no idea how hard it is to be an ice cream scooper."

**_            Or wrestling with an out-of-control milkshake machine…._**

            "Oh, but the auto shop is a few miles from here… it's going to take forever. Oh, I know!" Sango squealed suddenly. "You can sleep over for the night if you want to! I promise you won't have to sleep on the floor, although it's quite comfy, too… but I have guestrooms! And then tomorrow morning, you can go and search for your bashed-up car."

            Her offer was more than just a courtesy act… Kagome didn't fail to see the way her eyes lighted up at the prospect of having a guest over for the night.

**_            …._**

            "Well?" she prodded a few minutes later, impatient for an answer.

            Upon seeing the hopeful face, Kagome relented. "I don't think so," she replied uber politely. "I still need my car back from the shop, and it's a long walk from here, you know."

            "Tomorrow I could drive you there with Shippo…."

            "Yeah… but I tend to oversleep… and I'm trying to cut back on procrastinating… so I don't think so."

**_            Oops. I sound sarcastic. Dang… those theater classes did no wonder for me at all._**

            "Oh," Sango said, voice small. She seemed really hurt and disappointed, but shook her head a bit, cleaning her thoughts. "It's fine. I understand… I'll get Shippo now."

            "I'll come, too," Kagome stood up as if to accentuate her words.

            Motioning for her to follow, the pair left the kitchen. Walking past the living room and into the hallway, Kagome was reminded of how Sango wasn't exactly poor. The thick, peach-colored carpets (Fuzzed, too!)… fine, wooden floors in the kitchen… silver chandeliers hanging over her head majestically. 

**_            Just HOW much money does this girl make, anyway? She must be stinking rich to afford over 15 chandeliers…._**

            As they neared a door, Sango whispered, "The last time I checked, Shippo was sleeping. So I put Kirara in there to watch after him."

            Before Kagome could question who this 'Kirara' was, she opened the door, face expectant of a sleeping youkai… and revealed a frightened cat bound to the silk curtains, gagged with a velvet cloth (Probably from the chairs, as there were long strips of cloth ripped from it.). Shippo was also there, but he was sitting on his bum with newspapers shredded and scattered all over the ground like New Year's confetti; toilet paper also streaked the room, creating circles and circles of decorative substitutions for tissue paper. The most prominent thing in the room right now was a certain naked statue standing in the far corner….

            Stunned, Sango opened her mouth, closed it, opened it, and closed it again. The Fish Face- as Kagome affectionately called it- was never a good sign.

**_            Not a good sign!_**

            "Shippo," Kagome mumbled, eyes glinting an icy shade of blue. "Let's go, shall we?" She just KNEW a blowup would have occurred if they even tried to apologize. 

            Shippo recognized the sugary tone she used, and he knew she meant business. He nodded once solemnly before scuttling out of the room. He paused near Sango and added with a hint of pride, "No need to thank me. Just trying to help a person in need."

            The two walked quietly away from the disastrous scene. She muttered a 'Good day' to the still-shocked girl, letting Shippo and herself out of the apartment. Closing the door, she didn't speak a word to the little, scampering youkai at her feet… just calmly walked down the three flights of stairs, out of the lobby, and into the cool, nighttime air. 

            It wasn't until they were walking across the street, did Kagome turn to face Shippo, furious. "How dare you kill her room!" She began, eyes blazing.

            "Um, Kagome…."

            "How DARE you do something like that!"

            "Can we take it onto the next sidewalk? We don't really want to be crushed by some roaming car…."

            "… Fine. But the minute we're on top of the pavement, you are SO dead meat with me, young man!"

            And she meant every word of it. As soon as their feet barely touched the rocky, paved ground, she whirled on him again. "This is out of line, mister!"

            Shippo did the safest thing in this scary situation; he shrank back. (Figuratively.)

            "She takes you in for the whole day, feeding you and lending a gorgeous room for your beauty sleep while I slaved in an ice cream kitchen…."

            At this, he squealed in protest. "It was nap time… at 8 P.M.! And I wanted to help, but they wouldn't let me…."

            "And how do you repay her?" she continued to rant, oblivious to his squeak. "You destroyed part of her house! 'Kabob'-ed it! That looks like my…" she faltered, on the verge of saying brother, but struggled to say it, nonetheless. "… My brother's room."

            Shippo, knowing nothing of about her family's gruesome demise, disregarded the little hesitation. "But…."

            "Even after my rudeness, she helped me…."

            "Yes, but…."

            "She lent me her clothes!"

            "Yes, but…."

            "She even took a load off my back, offering to baby-sit you!"

            He recoiled at this statement, emerald eyes flashing. "I'm a… load to you?"

            Realizing what Kagome had let slip out of her mouth, her anger seeped out of her slowly as his eyes slowly narrowed into slits, obviously misreading the words. 

**_           Great… now the guilt monster is chewing on half my conscience._**

            "No… that wasn't what I had planned to say…."

            "But that was what you thought," he hissed angrily, scratching away her hands as she tried to pull him into a comforting hug. "Don't.Touch.Me. I'm just a load to you."

            Rubbing her scraped hands, Kagome winced at the acidic tone he used. It was rare for Shippo to use such a new, harsh voice with her, since he was seldom truly angry. "Shippo, let me explain."

            "No," he said stubbornly, refusing any apologies from her.

            "Please? I didn't really mean it like that…."

            It wasn't the smartest move, since she knew he knew she was lying like a dirty rug. Unfortunately, this set him off even more.

            "I don't need you… I don't need your stupid lies to make me happy," he snapped, turning around so his back faced her. Roughly, he wiped something off his face.

**_            Oh… never, ever lie to a child. Kids nowadays are too smart for their own good. They should stop eating vegetables. Oh yeah, and the stronger they get, they will be able to hunt you down for any future sheltering… so no milk for Shippo._**

            It took some time, but Kagome realized that he was crying a little, but very quietly so she wouldn't hear him. (Clever thing to do, actually.) Now, any leftover of anger of frustration she had 15 minutes ago were vanquished, and only to be replaced by guilt and sadness. Here she was, yelling at a young kid for ruining a measly room when he was still hurt from one month ago, just like she was two months ago….

**_            Oh, nice, Kagome, smooth working._**

            Sighing, Kagome attempted to pick him up again, murmuring, "Don't cry…." This time, Shippo shifted around, halfheartedly, trying to shrug off both her words and her hands, but allowing her in the end. "I didn't mean it like that… see… taking care of a child is a lot of hard work, so…."

            At this point, she trailed off, not really remembering which path to go with a complex sentence she had just created for herself. "We know you said it because you were angry at me," he said grudgingly, not happy to admit Kagome was correct and he was not. Pausing to wipe his runny nose along his cotton sleeve, he continued. "Mommy and Daddy used to say I was a 'force to reckon' with all the time… whatever that was supposed to mean."

            Kagome laughed outright at the accuracy of the phrase and shut her mouth when he glanced at her, confused. "It's nothing… really. Now, back to the point before we got so sidetracked in all this… stuff. Why did you destroy her room like that?" The two had begun to walk in a random direction.

            "I didn't attack it… it attacked me first."

            "Shippo!"

            "OK… I woke up, and it was staring at me eerily across the room… I can feel it wanting to snack on my poor, tiny arm. It's like when you stare at yourself in the mirror on a bad hair day, and your eyes just seem to pop out of their sockets."

**_            Nice analogy…._**

            "So what did you do?"

            "Well, I thought maybe smacking the cat with the newspapers would work… but it didn't. So I shredded it up all over the floor, prepared to scare it."

            "Wait… wait… you SHREDDED the paper?"

            "… I thought it might pee from being scared…."

            She kept quiet for a bit after this logical explanation.

            "Anyway, I decided to transform into all sorts of stuff, like a gigantic, spinning top and a pink balloon. But, the cat wasn't really scared at all. It clapped with its paws when I was done with my transformation into a scooter."

            "… And that's when you decided to tie the cat around the curtains with toilet paper and gag it with a pair of socks."

            "Exactly. But you see, it kept running around, and I kept running out of rolls, so before you know it, the paper was everywhere, especially around the naked statue because it seemed to love hiding behind the buttocks. So you know what I did instead?"

            "What?" she questioned, curiosity winning her over… again.

            "I turned into Sango- inside the bathroom, of course- and managed to trick the cat!"

            "…."

            "It saw my tail, though, so it went really crazy, trying to claw me into bacon bits, so I had to drop the critter again. This time, I rummaged through one of those drawers and came up with a ball of sock and- what luck!- a pair of mask tape. By now, the cat was in hiding somewhere."

            "Behind the buttocks."

            "Yes, and I couldn't get between the sides of the wall, so I had to crawl underneath and grab the thing."

            "Wait… why couldn't you have done that in the first place?"

            "… Kagome, imagine if you had crawled between a man's legs. Would that look pretty cool to you?"

            "…."

            "My point!" he declared, raising his little, index finger into the air. "Drastic times call for drastic measures."

**            Clichés, clichés….**

            "So I caught it by the neck, and it tried to scratch me. But clever me decided to do something else beside trying to restrain it physically."

            "And…?" she was hooked on the story, waiting with anticipation.

            "I grabbed its tail, and it stopped moving. Heehee… I think it was scared of me pulling, which was what I wanted it to think."

            "Oh, you are pure evil, Shippo. Pure evil."

            "I defend, not offend. And so, it remained motionless, and I successfully strapped the cat to the curtains with the masked tape… three times bounding, of course, so it wouldn't try to claw its way out like it tried with my hand. I took the green sock and stuffed it into its mouth, where the screeching wouldn't be heard. But I forgot about its legs, and I didn't think a cat would have such strong, hind legs. It kicked me, sending me sprawling onto the ground, where you guys opened the door just in time. And behold, I was sitting on the ground."

            "Hehe… great story… did your mom give you lessons on narrating?"

            "Yep! Plus, I couldn't say that those fairy tales books I've read didn't help me."

**_            I guess he can swallow saying 'mom' better than I can._**

            "But you still haven't been able to defend your punishment for hurting a mindless cat."

            "That's where you're wrong, Kagome."

            The two crossed another random street in five minutes, too engrossed in their conversation to notice that they were heading in some distant direction.

            "What? What do you mean?"

            "The thing was NOT a cat." He looked pretty darn triumphant at this finding, and she just had to delve deeper to recover the mystery.

            "So… you're saying it was a blob?"

            "Remember when I grabbed its tail?"

            "Yes…."

            "I forgot to mention that it had multiple tails. Meaning I had to CHOOSE one of the tails to grab from."

            She promptly stopped walking and dropped Shippo onto the ground. "Ow!"

            "What are you talking about?" she asked, blinking rapidly.

            "The cat also had other, weird features that I didn't notice until I saw her tail."

            "And that would be…" she urged, wanting to know more.

            "For instance, her eyes weren't normal for a cat. I mean, they were really big… too big, actually.

            Also, I just had this… this VIBE from her…. And she didn't smell like a normal kitty, either. And trust me, I've smelled enough kitties… and their litter boxes to know what a cat smells like. This one seemed… to groomed and self-dependent to be a normal cat."

            "What are you trying to say here…? That the cat was some sort of…."

            "… Youkai," he finished for her, staring solemnly.

            For a minute, Kagome's breath was knocked away. She couldn't believe it… a youkai in this town? It suddenly dawned on her how funny this sounded, and she burst out giggling. "Yeah, right, Shippo. The cat really had three tails."

            "I'm not kidding. This wasn't a joke," he answered, looking up at her through indignant eyes. "That was a real youkai, and it was in Sango's guestroom. And I'm assuming she didn't know about the cat."

            "Well, she told me that someone named Kirara was supposed to be watching after you."

            "I don't remember at all. Because the minute Sango left the room, I woke up and began to jump on the bed… before realizing the youkai was staring at me."

**_            Could… Sango mean Kirara as in Kirara the 'youkai' cat instead of human?_**

            Shippo seemed to be thinking of the same thing, putting two and two together inside the working mechanics of his head. They both stared at each other, wondering if a human could really have tamed a youkai. In Kagome and Shippo's case, it was different… it was maternity issue. But this was a pet relationship… could that be possible, human and youkai?

**_            …._**

            "Nah," they both said, shaking their heads. "It's not possible."

            "I still can't believe there was a stray youkai inside the room…. Did it hurt you, Shippo?"

            "Nope… but I'm just wondering… Sango said she was sending someone named Kirara into the room, right?"

            "Yes…."

            "And she wasn't there at all. What if Sango thought Kirara was inside the bathroom?"

            "What about that?"

            "Remember how I woke up right after she left the room…?"

            Kagome's eyes flew wide open. That was true…. And suddenly, the pieces of the puzzle clicked together. "The youkai ate the girl!"

            Nodding grimly, Shippo added, "Some youkai can't control themselves."

            "Oh… this is bad stuff right here…. How are we supposed to tell Sango? Wait… I forgot, I have work tomorrow, so it will have to be you who will break the terrible news to her."

            Hearing a little squeak that was starting another argument about who would tell whom, she intercepted with a "Now we can begin our search for the auto shop."

            It was crude, but effective. "Isn't that where we're going, though?"

            "Nope."

            "Where are we going then?"

            "I don't know," she said, rolling her eyes. "I didn't know from the very beginning since we left the apartment. I don't really know where we are. I thought you paid attention…."

            Getting off his poor butt, Shippo clambered into her arms again, where he would have easy journey for the rest of the night. And as she began to notice her surroundings, ambling around like a drunken idiot, he started another round of talking a few minutes after. "You know, Sango is pretty nice," he began quietly.

            "No. We're not going to be friends with her, regardless if she was sweeter than sugar or as bitter as the old hag we encountered along the way," she whispered harshly. She would not be sucked into his enticing words.

**_            No acquaintances…. Or allies, for that matter._**

            "But why?" he asked the dreaded question softly, already knowing the answer.

            "B…because it hurts too much," she answered simply, not wanting to think about it.

**_            No…._**

            She didn't want to remember, and from the way Shippo was fidgeting, it was obvious he was doing the same. It hurts too much to have friends… they couldn't afford the price of having a person who could hold secrets and talk to them.

            "… Does it hurt, too?" he asked, looking at his hands. "The images… the loneliness… the pain?" His voice held rare emotions for a four-year-old… anger, sadness, regret….

            "We're not cowards," Kagome murmured, sidestepping the question. She couldn't break down… she wouldn't cry and tell her true feelings, her true turmoil, her **reality.** In Shippo's eyes, she was a mother and father figure… someone who had temporarily replaced his parents' spot until he was old enough to understand. And no matter how mature he acted, he was still a child inside… still laughing about the silliest things. And Kagome would not break him simply because she loved him. She would be the strong, upstanding pillar for him to lean on in the relationship.

            But inside… she was afraid. Afraid of those horrendous images, the excruciating pain from the images, and worst of all, the coward for whom she really was.

            Her words were lies.

                                                                                                          ~*~*~*~ 

            The rest of the night, (Technically morning….) was wasted in favor of finding Kagome's white car…, which was in a hidden auto shop, too.

**_            Oh… nothing like a walk through the park at 2 in the morning to revitalize your already screwed senses…._**

            When they had, at last, found the shop (It was wedged between two houses.), Kagome immediately went for the car, but stopped. 

**_            They're going to lock it. Duh! Who would be stupid enough to leave it unprotected at night?_**

            As Shippo headed towards the door, Kagome mumbled, "Forget it. We don't have our car keys. It's not going to open."

            But he still tried to open the door. It didn't work, as expected. "See?" she said rather deflatedly.

            "Kagome, I worked alongside with my dad in a car shop. Car shop. CAR SHOP. Do you think one year of working has taught me nothing?"

            "Yes."

**_            Whoa… he worked at age three? I was sucking on my thumb back then._**

            Sighing, he mumbled a few words underneath his breath before saying, "Do you have anything worth pickable?"

            "… Huh?"

            "You know… pencil, nail file, bobby pin?"

            Kagome patted around her gray sweats before answering, "Nope. But I do have this sewing needle that has been poking me in the back since Sango gave it to me." Frustrated, she swatted behind her back until she had a firm grasp on the tiny, delicate thing. "HaHA!" she yelled happily as the scratch was gone. 

            Shippo's eyes bulged. "Don't throw that away!" he screamed, launching himself towards her…, which knocked both of them down.

            "Oof…." The collision knocked both down onto the ground, and for a moment, she saw stars. 

            "Yes! Just in time," he cheered silently, grabbing the needle from her hands and bouncing off her stricken body. "If you had thrown that away, we would have to camp outside. Now stand up and watch me pick the car. Hehe… this will be a piece of chocolate…."

            Struggling to sit up, she managed to catch Shippo fiddling with the door handle for a few moments before a faint click aired briefly. Both blinked quietly at the car before he tried the door handle.

            It opened.

            Kagome's eyes widened at the thought of how a small child could have easily unlocked a car without car keys.

**_            Darn vegetables…._**

            "Whoa! Your car doesn't look like a catastrophe anymore!" Shippo exclaimed, eyes gleaming like a child with a hidden stash of suckers. "I can do cartwheels in the back seat now! How cool is that?"

**_            …._**

            Well, the reaction wasn't that surprising… considering that the amount of toy trucks he owned duplicated the number of pairs of shoes Kagome bought over any day… and that saying a lot.

  
            "Oh God…."

            "Yeah! I can't believe they gave us a bill of 15,000 yens! Just for fixing the benders and cleaning out the car? What do you think of this?" he muttered furiously, glancing over at the bill. The time spent being a secretary was well spent.

            "They didn't remember to put back the windshield wipers! Do you know how particularly dangerous this is, when it's raining? I could crash!"

            "Maybe someone wanted it that way… they were trying to set you up so you would crash horribly and die of a horrible death that includes burning."

            "Oh, lay off the chips at night. Who would want to do that to me?"

**_            Really… I know of a certain person who would love to do that to us…._**

            "I don't know… someone with a grudge against us, say, that white dude in the grocery store."

            "Inuyasha?"

            "Yeah."

            "He wouldn't kill us, you weirdo," she argued back.

            "And why not? He tried to the first time!"

            Not one to admit that it was partly her fault for stealing, she agreed. "OK… that was just a minor boo-boo. But everyone makes mistakes, you know."

            "He doesn't like me."

            "Well, he doesn't like me, either, so we're both even. And he wouldn't hurt us… we're under custody… or parole. If he kills us, he'll be sent to jail. Hehe… so he'll know better than to mess with us weak humans… er, youkai."

            Shippo nodded, mulling over this new perspective to the situation. It certainly brought a fresh lemon twist, in his opinion. "You have a point there… so I guess I can tease him all I want, and he won't be able to grip his sticky, little fingers around my throat?"

            "Yep. And who knows, if you mess his room around long enough, he'll have to kick you out and send you to me," she added, winking. 

**_            But the thought of hurting Inuyasha just oh-so pains me…. I'll cut off his hair to make amends for that. Heehee…._**

            "Yeah… I like your style of thinking, Kagome. We could be really good friends," he said slyly, patting her shoulder.

            "That's good I'm on your side. Now it's time for bed. I have to get to work tomorrow. And I know, I know, it's four in the morning, and I don't have a lot of hours left for snoozing, but I'll need all I can get. After all, ice cream is a mean, mean thing to deal with in the real world."

            As they entered the mobile, Kagome prepared herself for a two-hour sleep, while Shippo stared at her, face intent. "What's the matter?" she asked, ruffling his hair a bit.

            "… I was just thinking about earlier…."

            This caught her attention. "Yeah?"

            "And I _know_ from experience that it's bad to have people to confide in…."

            A little, sharp pang in her heart sounded.

            "But friends are different…."

            And another.

            "Why is it bad to have friends?"

            And one more.

            Her hand withdrew from his head, almost burnt from him physically instead of emotionally.

**_            No…. I won't tell. Never spill or tell._**

            "Well," she said, her voice almost to the extent of cracking. "I guess I'll tell you some time later. Just not now, since I'm really tired."

            He frowned at the unsatisfied answer, but shrugged. It was better than "When you're older" repetition adults seemed to say when wanting to get out of a sweaty situation. "OK…" he answered unsteadily. Kissing her numbing cheek, he mumbled a "G'Night" to her before settling down into a peaceful sleep.

**_            More naïve than me… more than when I was two months ago…._**

            Suddenly, the urge to sleep inside her spotless car was now overwhelmed with another feeling. The feeling that she often felt every night, late when Shippo was far too asleep to notice her muffled sounds. The feeling that seemed to dampen her lively spirit to live, to continue forward, to try to escape her stalker. The feeling that had surfaced itself two months ago, just when she had begun traveling with Shippo… the feeling that would never go away unless….

            She stared dully out the car, forehead pressed against the cooling window, which was quite unusual at night with its humid air and all.

**_            I don't want to…._**

            She pressed her hands to her ears in an attempt to block out the oncoming thoughts. They had been surging forward lately, and she wanted nothing to do with them anymore…. But the harder she tried to will the voices to disappear, the louder they became. Increasing louder and noisier, her eardrums would burst any minute now….

**_            I don't want to live…_**

            "No…" she whispered, knowing that Shippo had just fallen asleep and would wake up easily. Already, she could see his breathing become irregular. "Go away…."

            Flitting images passed through her mind… her grandpa gutted… Souta stabbed with no chance of living… her mother's neck nearly decapitated… Mr. Tsuyo's haunted head….

            She choked on more of her mumbled words, and a few tears dribbled down her chin. "No more… please…."

            Once the tears formed, they couldn't… no, wouldn't, stop falling.

            For the first time since two months, Kagome began to cry silently. The images were never so vivid… so surreal before… it was no longer her imagination or haunted conscience… it was her **reality** at night. She was living through the pain… the shock… the _terrified_ feelings all over in one night. The tears streamed downwards, falling between her fingers that covered her grieving face.

**_            Make it stop! Anything…._**

            One image came into mind, but remained there, glaring down upon her. It was the worst….

**_            The worst one…._**

            Tears escaped her eyes faster and harder, wetting her lap.

            "Stop…" she whispered, begged. "I… I don't want to live Yue's memory anymore…."

            Her lips began to run with blood… she had bitten her lip too hard.

**_            No more… no more…._**

            "I don't want to… relieve anymore memories…."

**_            But most of all, I don't want to be responsible for anymore… deaths…._**

                                                                                                     ~*~*~*~

**_            Every night… it's the same…._**

            "Images… two months…."

            Her eyes glazed over as images took over her mind and eyes.

            Shippo… ran… claws… the feral eyes that burned into her head, wanting to hurt her…. Her own gradually lost its unique shine that would tell someone she was paying attention, and she slipped into one of the grayed images playing forth inside her mind, teasing her.

_            She felt something sharp, almost knife-like, thrust itself into her soft, tender flesh on her back just beneath her shoulder blade; she didn't move, thinking that if she did, then it would encourage the Huskie to do even more damage to her back._

_            Suddenly, the pointed object jerked itself away from inside her, and she winced as some of her skin ripped from inside and around the hole, sticking onto the knife-like thing. Kagome thought for a fleeting second that it wouldn't try a second time._

_            How foolish that thought was._

_            The pain came back, this time-_

            "Higurashi," a voice shook her from the silenced images. "You're in my office next."

            Standing up, she nervously smoothed the creases on her wrinkled blouse. This was the fourth day of her parole… unfortunately, it was her first day meeting with the police.

            They had called the ice cream store, and Miroku had picked up. Realizing it was the police station, he handed the receiver to Kagome, who cradled it between her shoulders (She was washing the dishes….). The police officer had explained tearfully that there was utter chaos in the police station. Someone had stolen some top-secret file that they needed, and until things calm down, she wouldn't be able to go to the station, let alone visit the chief.

            For a brief moment, she wondered if it was him who had taken her file, but thought better of it. Four days wasn't very long, and she highly doubted that he would be able to crack a safe code that easily. He was a good hacker, but not a great hacker. There was probably no such thing as a great hacker….

**_            He sounded so sad and regretful… hehe, but I was practically doing a victory dance._**

            Kagome followed the man into the small, cluttered room, watching the officer search for something under a pile of old, rotten bananas. 

**_            Eewwww…._**

            "Success!" he yelled triumphantly, holding up a blue, ballpoint pen.

            As she settled into the provided seat, he sat behind the desk and took out a piece of paper, scribbling something indecipherable to her eyes. "OK, let's begin," he suggested, "Let's start with the first day and progress towards today."

            And Kagome knew, just knew, the session would last longer.

            But even if she retold the past, four days' events, her mind still lingered on a few memories that have yet to be played out, haunting her for the rest of the visit….

**_           Yue…._**

                                                                                               ~*~*~*~

            Kagome exited the police station, a bit uncomfortable. True, the session with Mr. Hamaki had gone off well; she even liked him, regardless of his pig-living ways. But the images HAD to come at the particular time, and she had stumbled through her words, sounding as convincing as the next worst con.

**_            Great… he thinks I've been doing genocide in my spare time._**

            She continued down the street, lost in thought, and the images came once more. Stifling frustration, outrage, and a scream, she clamped her mouth and refused to open it, no matter how hard she trembled. The extravagant scenes just would not leave her alone….

**_            I refuse to remember…!_**

            Her mind had another thing in mind, though, as it drove onwards, not caring for its effect on the slowly crumbling girl…. The build-up tension inside her was wearing her will and spirit down slowly.

_           "Hey," a bright voice called, "What's your name?"_

_           "Kagome… and this here is Shippo-no, Shippo, put down the pear. Why do you want to know?"_

_           "You look lonely."_

_           "Um… not to be rude with your happy beliefs, but there are plenty of people shopping her alone. And don't they look lonely to you?"_

_           "No, not really. From you… I… I just feel a sort of lonely presence emanating from your spiritual aura."_

_            A funny look._

_           "Um… yeah. I'm sorry, but I don't do drugs. Why don't you just… um… go bother someone else with them? Like that poor man outside the store… he looks like he is in need of a good friend… no matter how cracked she is."_

_           "That's not funny! I was trying to make someone's day a special day! And if you can't appreciate it willingly, then dammit, you're going to become my friend, whether you like it or not!"_

            "Go away," she gritted, her anger and outrage replaced by growing fear. "I can do this… I don't have to remember everything…."

_           "Hehe… that was actually cool."_

_           "I told you a nice, relaxing film would work! I mean, I was once a cook at that chili palace… but I quit in favor of becoming a secretary… for something."_

_           "You don't know what profession you're in?"_

_           "Well… not exactly. All I do everyday is type up mounds of stuff. And the transcript is there for me, too. And the money isn't exactly shabby, either."_

_           "Whatever. But that's funny… not knowing your profession."_

_           "Yeah… but it couldn't have been funnier than when the guy in the movie tried to declog a toilet."_

_           "Eeww… I'm not one for toilet jokes… but Shippo loves them. Too bad he's asleep. Not so good for him."_

_           "Ha… I'm dragging my husband, too, so it's all good… we're even."_

_           "At least Shippo doesn't weigh two boulders and more."_

_           "Pssh… that wasn't funny… it was true, but it wasn't funny…. Don't laugh!"_

_            But Kagome already did._

**_            Leave me alone…. I don't need this crap…._**

_           "Hey… you don't look too well. Are you feeling all right?"_

_           "It's fine. Nothing to worry. See?" Kagome smiled a big, old' smile._

_           "You're lying. You don't smile like that. Usually, it's lopsided…. Man, you lie really bad, you know that? Have you considered taking acting classes?"_

_           "Yes, I have taken classes, and they did little more than inspire me to become the Next Worst Thing. And how do you know I'm lying? I don't smile lopsided. I've smiled to myself in the mirror plenty of times."_

_           "You see… that's because you force it. When you're not, one edge of your lips usually quirk up a bit further than the other."_

_           "Man… do you inspect EVERYONE'S smiles?"_

_           "Yep. I'm weird like that. Now, why are you lying to me, your good friend?"_

_           "Darn… have YOU considered becoming some sort of detective?"_

_            A small, delighted laugh. "You're avoiding the question. Talk… or face my fingers… I didn't grow nails for nothing."_

_           "…."_

_           "Well? Say it, or I'll scratch it."_

_           "That is so lame."_

_           "Kagome! Stop changing the subject!"_

_           "OK… but you CAN'T tell anyone…."_

_           "Cross my heart, hope to die; if I lie, stick 12 needles in my eye."_

_            She rolled her eyeballs, but continued, "PROMISE…."_

_           "I PROMISE… the secret will be with me forever… taken to my grave. The spot where I push up daisies."_

_           "I'm actually worried for my safety… and…."_

**_            And take it to her grave she did._**

            Slowly, her mind reached for the farthest image in the darkest corner of her mind, struggling to pull it to the present for her to watch over. "No," she gritted, grinding her teeth together. She forced herself to conjure up pink ponies and non-rabid bunnies….

**_            Happy… happy… happy… happy… I'm going to need a new set of teeth after this…._**

            Kagome reached for the end of the block and turned… to walk smack into a person's back. "Ow…."

            Hmm… it was funny at how coincidental the ice cream store was on this side of the block.

**_            Maybe I should give Miroku more credit than he deserves… maybe the ice cream store is actually more popular than I had imagined. Or the line is heading for a nearby concert in a stadium with some ultra-famous pop star. Of course, I don't know who the famous person is. The last time I checked for famous people, my favorite person was The Beatles… and I wasn't even born when they were playing!_**

            "Watch it," the person snapped, turning around to glare.

**_            Ai…._**

            Kagome had her first look at the man in front of her, and he was not normal. With two golden eyes that slightly resembled a certain someone who shall remain anonymous on her hit list, he could pass for a girl. But some… er, attributes, denied the conclusion. The long, white hair didn't help the male factor, either….. "Wow! Cool moon tattoo," she admitted grudgingly as she spotted his forehead. "Nice… uh, tiger stripes, too, but I really think that getting those tattoos were a bit over the top for some nameless band who will die out within five years. It's pretty painful to remove tattoos, too, you know. I'm afraid you can't stand here, either. I have to get to work. Excuse me, please." 

            Leaving the slightly baffled man behind, she brushed past him, trying to find the scary, sea foam restaurant. As she pushed and grunted her way near the restaurant, the crowd thickened and seemed to spread out, weirdly. At one point, a young lady with quite the scaly skin had screamed in her ears unintentionally, 'Get the bastard!"

**_            Maybe it's more of a wrestling competition… and would it hurt several people to get into lines to purchase tickets? God… I think the whole town is here…._**

            Confused, she pushed her way through, curiosity overthrowing her logic senses. Finally reaching the front of the source of talk, she found several people clad in army suits, screaming orders at the uproarious town behind yellow tape.

            "Settle down!"

            "Shut up! Government business!"

            "AYHC is taking over!"

            At this, the crowd became even more boisterous, if possible.

            "Shut up, you good-for-nothings!"

            "Who gives a care about government business? It's all about money, not job for you hoggers!"

            "AYHC sucks! Go move your base somewhere else! Make someone else's lives miserable!"

            In the midst of the orders and insults thrown back and forth was Sango, her being female the unique, outstanding of the people. Her general outfit stuck to her through sweat, and she was pretty tired. "Nothing to see here, people! Go away and resume life activities!" she yelled at the top of her voice, like the rest of the working people.

            "Shut up, you filthy breed!" And following the harsh comment was flying mucus, hitting her across the cheek. Sango quickly wiped the disgusting phlegm, unfazed by the treatment.

**_            What nerve of that guy…._**

            Kagome shook her head disgustedly, momentarily distracted at the foulness of some town people. She shook out of it, though, and screamed, "Sango! Over here!"

            Thankfully, she was in front row, and the girl heard her. Looking over, her face broke out into a slight smile. Jogging away from her position, she headed for Kagome. Grabbing her wrist, Sango pulled her from under the yellow police tape and dragged her into the store, where she flung both inside and shut the door tightly.

            Immediately, the ear-splitting noises were immediately cut off, and Kagome set straight to questioning. "What the hell is going on out there? Why is everyone screaming obscenities at your working base or whatever? Why are they lined outside the ice cream store? And don't tell me they all had mad cravings for some dairy products… at least one of them must be lactose and tolerant."

            It was when she stopped for a gasp of breath did she notice the slight flakes of dried tears on Sango's face. They were faint, so it must have been some long time ago…. Gulping, she whispered, "Turn around." Her voice cracked a bit, and with raised eyebrows, she did as told, but in a leisurely fashion.

**_            God…._**

            It was happening… again. Blood… everywhere. The normally scrubbed counters had bits of torn flesh playfully scattered, forming a brightly-displayed mural. The milkshake machine was on… and it was creating a terrible noise, as if it was grinding something. The nozzle was spurting out a steady jet of blood… splattering her. The grinding stopped momentarily, and a flecks of white smacked her across the face. Bringing up a hand, she felt the hard, white substance, and nearly gasped as she realized they were bones of the newly dead….

            The tables… hacked fingers standing upright in burnt ashes of cigarette butts, still bleeding out blood… random pieces of fingernails were wedged into the colored tables, and they held crusted blood. Sawed legs dangled on the edges of elegant, looped chairs, the leftover pieces of skin blowing gently by the ventilator… resembling frills on a little girl's dress. Arms… they, too, were hacked up. And this time, she could see the white bones… how some broke through the middle of the muscle, just like a brittle twig. Pieces of the arms were gripped around the bottom of the edges, still there for a grand look.

            But on the baby chairs to the left in the corner… Kagome screamed shrilly, stumbling into Sango.

**_            It's been months…._**

            Four baby chairs, the belts strapped across the front…. Mr. Tsuyo's head rotting head. The nose turning a sickly, charred ebony, and the hair falling off the brown scalp… still falling, actually, and landing into a fresh batch of blood nearby. The lips were torn savagely from the face, leaving the squirming flesh behind to pour out the crimson sin.

            Next to him, propped up sideways, was her mom. Her hair was also falling, and a long, thing strip of olive skin near hung loosely over the chair legs. One eye remained in tact with her head, but the eye was dangerously distorted… no pupil. Carved out caveman-like… with just the white to look at… and a hole through her eye, allowing everyone to see what was behind the pupil.

            The last was… Yue. Her long, black hair was tied sharply to the back of the chair… exposing her neck. Multiple slashes glared off the light, strutting proudly in her eyes. Yue's nose was broken off… literally. Flesh around her nose was pushed sideways, showing the pink, eaten flesh beneath, marking the beginning of her hollowed-out cheeks… Her tongue was ripped away, showing a helpless bit of muscle that had trailing pieces of taste buds still lingering outside a bit of her mouth…. Dried streams of blood around her mouth began to run again.

**_           He's been working… recreating more images for me to see…._**

            The fourth chair was surprisingly clean, but a piece of paper was taped to it. A dark, noticeable '?' was scrawled on it… Kagome's breathing heightened.

            "Kagome? Kagome?" Sango whispered, giving her arm a shake. 'I need to talk to you."

            Nodding, she numbly leaned against the wall… but pulled back sharply. She had touched running blood. Something else stuck to the blood like glue… looking up, Kagome rubbed the circular object between her fingers… sleek and smooth. Bringing it close to her face, she peered for a few seconds before quickly hurling the object towards the opposite wall with a hyperventilated gasp.

            It was an eyeball… complete with fragile eyelids over the green iris. It was most likely that he had just stuck his hand into the person's eye and sliced the whole thing out….

            Sango led her carefully over sprawled, naked, decapitated bodies on the floor. They passed by a headless woman… without any arms or legs. But a huge hole was apparent through her left breast. Her pale skin was tainted with her own, dark blood. Kagome resisted the urge to vomit upon the body.

            "Commander Heika," Sango addressed bowing slightly. "I have her."

**_            What?_**

            "What's this?" she asked, voice high. "I didn't do this… I 'm not murder-material…. I swear…."

            "Relax… we don't arrest without proof. It's only because of this object right here," he answered smoothly, holding out an envelope with a gloved hand. The beautifully cursive letters of her name resembled an innocent that of a wedding invitation…. As she reached out to take hold of the letter shakily, he took it back. "Fingerprints."

            Nodding, Kagome waited as he struggled with the letter. When he opened it successfully, he took out a tape recorder. The three stared at the simple electronic. A small, unnoticed, white piece of paper that had been tucked in the envelope fluttered onto the floor, landing in a small pile of wet crimson. Before the red had fully swallowed the whole, pure white, all could make out the dark scrawl on the piece of paper. Only one word, after all, and they were obliged to follow it. After all, what could they do, throw away the tape recorder?

**            PLAY.**

            Slowly, Commander Heika pressed the play button, and immediately, noises filled the room, silencing small talk. Car screeching… women screaming… crashes… Kagome vaguely heard her brother's screaming voice in the background.

**_            Collections of the past…._**

**            BANG!**

            The noise echoed the dead room, filling each and every person, especially the quivering girl, with a sound that seemed to sound menacingly. And everyone knew that sound, that noise….

**            "I SEE YOU. DON'T YOU FORGET THAT."**

            The tape ended, and everyone remained quiet, staring at the shaking girl clenching onto Sango's arm with white fingers.

            Her eyes were screwed shut, and she bit her lips in restraint of hurling the recorder towards the wall, like the eyeball.

            Why…?

            Why?

            WHY?

            No matter how far she traveled… how long she hid… HE was there. She couldn't escape from him… haunting her everyday had grown worse. "You… you _cause_ these images…" she mumbled, dancing pictures of grandpa swinging dully with a rope around his neck for deadly support. "You cause these… I want out…."

            "Kagome?" Sango asked tentatively, shaking her a bit.

            "I want out," she answered, sounding strangled. Her eyes opened widely, holding back a deluge of tears.

            Letting go of her elbow, Kagome turned, walking away towards the door, prepared to push her way towards the overly demanding crowd.

**_           This is it…._**

            No, no, no, no….

**_           Time to do it…._**

            Shut up!

**_           You can't get out now… you're stuck, Kagome. You can't escape. You want out._**

            "I want out, but I want to live," she whimpered.

**_           You want out… you want out, and you know it…. Face the challenger._**

            She could no longer deny it…. This was it. She would face him… the damned who had ruined her life…. This was going to be the place. He ruined her… he isolated her… brought her down to the level where she thought only scums like stealers would be…. Kagome had nowhere else to hide. She was infinitely stuck here for the next three weeks, and she… she, Kagome Higurashi, ex-daughter of a family who took care of a shrine, valedictorian of her college, would face him….

           What was there to lose?

            Her life. She was scared… every fiber of her human nature was telling her rationally, calmly, that she would not live when that day came. That when the man, the sadistically brilliant man who was a stalker, brutal killer, and a hacker, was after her, she never had a chance to live in the beginning. 

**_           How… how stupid am I to believe that… I would live through escaping Tokyo…? Stalkers don't come and go… they stay with you…._**

            "Wait!" a cracked voice called out.

            Turning around, Kagome saw one of the most astonishing scenes in her life: Sango crying silently. Wiping her nose hurriedly, hair sticking to her face, she begged gently, "Please… help me."

**_            That should be me…. Me, begging for help._**

            She kept quiet, but asked, "With what?" It was the least she could do for Sango's acts of kindness.

            As she was about to answer, Kagome suddenly felt something brush against her hair. She turned around, ignoring Sango again for a moment. It was a foot… a dangling foot. A scratched-up, bashed foot. With agonizingly slow movement, she craned her neck up to see who was it….

            It was a repetitive dream from so long ago… one she couldn't remember… when she had first spotted her family hanged in the middle of her bedroom… she couldn't believe… she wouldn't believe it…. But the funeral proved it was true. And so was this one….

            The foot belonged to a grown woman… and her skin was also that of the scaly kind. Her elbows were twisted into an unimaginable position, where the joint would point upwards instead.

**_            Souta…._**

            Next to her were two children, one female, and one male. The girl was hanging there, eyes dully glazed over, not looking anywhere. But she was naked… and multiple, deep slashes across her breasts and stomach proved that she wasn't unharmed. Her hair was in patches… Kagome could only imagine how it felt to have your hair ripped and pulled away harshly from the head…. The imagination was no where near the real thing.

**_            Mom…._**

            The boy was the last. He was lynched, as all the others, and he had his ear ripped off. Not to be outdone like last time, his entire left side was cleared of any organs… or so it seemed. His left ear was missing, showing a small, bleeding hole where the eardrum began. His hair on his left side were ripped out, exposing a bleeding skull. His left arm wasn't in tact with his socket… instead, there was another, slightly bigger hole there. The meat… the _flesh_ around the socket were loose, and some were falling heavily towards the ground, all wiggling and squirming like it was still alive. His leg was somewhere amidst the other body parts, and the toes on his feet were dangling by mere skin. In front of her very eyes, Kagome was privileged to see each one of the toes rip away delicately from the feet due to gravity and fall with a dull thud into the flesh on the ground.

**_            Grandpa…. No… no…! He's playing with my mind… he's not killing everyone I know…. He's not killing strangers to scare me… he's not… he's NOT… he's NOT!_**

            But the last person proved her wrong. The last person was a male… a male with black hair, tied to a low ponytail. The male with his neck lolled to the side, fingers bloody with flesh hidden underneath his nails. The male with an apron that tied his hands behind his back, rendering him helpless. The male with a name tag that had read 'Miroku'.

            For a moment, she stared. She stared at the person hanging above. She stared at her boss… the young man who had sexually harassed her a few days ago… the man who claimed mimes were too loud for the area… the man who had been in the sticky situation with her a few days ago…. 

            Miroku was dead, gone… and Kagome knew why Sango had been crying now. She still hesitated… not wanting to touch a dead body…. She had already tried to comfort her mom, Grandpa, and Souta, but they had been dead long before. She had no need to touch the corpse of a young man now.

            "Please… help me give him a proper burial," Sango pleaded once more, her eyes crying more than before.

            Feeling she owed Sango for using her arm like a grip device, she nodded slightly. However, before any action could take place, the familiar ripping sound occurred, and a loud thump sounded behind her as all four bodies fell simultaneously, with Sango's rough cry for accompaniment. 

**_            Just like then… so long ago…._**

            Again, the quiet chatter that had been resurrected only a few moments ago stopped as AYHC members alongside with police officers stared. Fat drops of salt rolled down Sango's cheeks as she stood stiffly, watching the actions. 

**_           She doesn't want to see Miroku's broken neck._**

            Kagome realized this only after she started for the clump of bodies. He had ended up at the bottom of the pile….

**_            I may be mean, but I'm no cruel…._**

            She easily removed the girl's body, since it weighed no more than 70 pounds. But the boy was a harder matter. He was a bit older, and therefore, weighed somewhere along 200 pounds. After much struggling, she managed to move him away a bit… she never noticed how she was also struggling with a surprising sob that threatened to escape her. 

**_            I forgot how the dead who died for no reason affected me so much…._**

            The woman was another matter… she was a big woman, weighing around a rough guess of 400 pounds. And this time, Kagome used up all her energy just to move the woman over a bit. Feeling the need to tear her hair out in frustration, she saw that all her hard work, for the past 15 minutes, had just created a small hole fit enough to grab some hair of Miroku's. It was useless, and some members of the AYHC finally realized that she needed help. As a few started to migrate to the center of the store, she bent down, her dark hair spilling over her.

            A hand shot up and grabbed her hair… then pulled.

            And she screamed.

                                                                                               ~*~*~*~ 

*

*

A/N: o_0 *screams* I FINISHED Chapter 7! *faints* T_T I just wanted to apologize first and foremost for taking over TWO months to write this. I cannot even begin to tell you of this chapter's wrath. *shakes fist* Shall I being my groveling? But I wanted to clarify some things up before I beg for forgiveness.

I am proud to say that this is probably my most joyous chapter. Probably because after being hit with writer's block TWO times, I was able to make a great comeback and kick some writer's block's booty! ^_^ You will be proud to know that this chapter is the second longest I've done. Although only filling out to 12 pages, this baby IS the second longest chapter… so it kind of makes up for the lateness. The longest chapter? Chapter 4, Pt. 2, coming in with 16 pages for written draft, and 10,000 words… or 20,000. ^_^() I think it's 10,000. This one? 9,555 words. *proud* 

            Now, I have to give you my reasons for being so late, because I make up excuses all the time. But this time, I think it's legitimate. ^_^

Writer's block: *sigh* This THING here gave me CRAP. If you think I bummed off the whole summer, you were right. ^_^ But I also attempted to work on Chapter 7. The problem? I scrapped SIX ideas before settling with this one. And after writing seven pages, I hit another pothole. So I went ahead and scrapped another idea… making it SEVEN ideas in all. -_-* Flame: *sigh* After some consultants, I found out that the flame wasn't exactly a flame. *ducks chairs thrown at her* I admit, I sometimes exaggerate, but I really did believe it was some sort of flame. After checking it out with another older person, I found that it was more of criticism than flame… and I began to see that it was. I guess what I'm trying to say is that while I appreciate the criticism most often and take note of it, I don't like the really harsh ones where I just feel stupid. So go ahead and tell me what you think might be wrong with this chapter, but please don't include stuff like, "Oh, because of all these mistakes, this was just OK. Not the best I've seen, but OK." I'm sure you've read better works than my story, and I know you will prefer other stories to mine, but please keep in mind that I'm only 13, and this is the best I can do. I'd prefer not to have competitive comparing…. Am I asking too much here? (Totally sincere question.) Moving: Yes… I'm in the process of moving. I was supposed to tell you when I would be moving, but I guess my computer was packed away before I could. *grumble* So this is it. I'm receiving my new screen today because I lost some adapter, so my computer couldn't work without a screen… and I can finally be online! *pumps fist into air* 

            **~PEOPLE WHO HAVE SUPPORTED ME OR REPLIED TO SOMETHING~**

            Hehe…. ^_^

_           ChristyKay:_ Hehe… I REALLY, REALLY appreciate how you have managed to help me pull through this 'crisis' of mine. I hope you get over yours soon… especially your mid-life crisis… no one likes those. =( Just wondering… are the good people in your hometown going, or the bad ones? =) I'm so glad you're still sticking to this story… I mean, my updating schedule is so shaky it's not even funny. *mumble* ^_^

_           Kagura4:_ *laughs evilly* Man, this computer is pure evil! =( It froze on me, and I had a nice, long review for you, too! *huff* THANK you so much for the support. So I guess you would prefer a nice, wonderful chapter in TWO years than a rushed, sloppy chapter in one week? Hmm… the disadvantages AND advantages. I bet you're reminiscing of the wonderful days where I used to update once every week, eh? *wink* Well, I'm reminisicing, too. LOL.

_           Silver Magiccraft:_ *bows* Thank you for loving my chapter. Now, I've got to wonder why I'm not on your favorite's list if this was a wonderful story. *blinks before dodging some of the chairs* OK, OK, I wasn't pressuring you or anything… I was just KIDDING… you know, HA-HA-HA? LOL. Thank you for your rushing needs. Sometimes, a good, ol' push in the butt will get me going. Heehee….

_           San-chan1:_ WOW… you're REALLY nice about this one. LOL. I mean, you also swing off-topic, LIKE ME! ^_^ Cool… I went to France once… but I didn't like the smelly cheese… I never really liked cheese in the first place if you really think about it…. Yeah, writer's blocks sucks!

_           Clu3less:_ *laughs* I'm glad you appreciate my hard work at trying to make you want to retch. Personally, the part with the toes made me want to fall out of the chair, hurling. o_0 Don't get me wrong… I just think it's kind of emotionally disturbing that way, you know? LOL… well, I hoped you enjoy this chapter and tell me what you think of it. ^_^

_           Caitlin6767:_ THANK you for not abandoning my story. ¬_¬ IF you're reading this, send me a review, telling me you love this chapter and you're still reading! ^_~ Or you can just send me a review, saying that you're still reading. But include something about the chapter! LOL…. ^_^ And I'm DEFINITE this IS one 'frickin' kick-ass' story! LOL.

_           Silver Dragon12:_ You, my friend, are NOT nice. *huff* The two front legs of a chair ain't gonna help me through this troubled time. LOL… and when I say I'm moving in a couple of weeks, that means that in a few weeks, I'm going to have to pack my computer away and go to a new house. *cries* My computer isn't working… so I hope you review this chapter… I'm at my cousin's house. *thanks God*

_           Crystal Sapphire:_ *Tsk tsk* Man, I expected BETTER of you! LOL… I wanted to SCARE you… not make you laugh. But oh well. Not everyone can get what they want, right? LOL… Heehee… I just didn't think Kagome seeing her family hanging in the middle of her bedroom pretty funny… unless you're some sadist. *poke*

_           Maiden of the Moon:_ Like a dutiful citizen (of Fanfiction.net), I left you a wonderful review to why I was dead for the past… *cough* TWO WEEKS *cough*. Heehee… THANK you for wanting an update. I hoped you like…. *cackles* I mean, whoa… talk about major mood change. I think this one contrasts greatly to most of the chapters back then. It had a bit of (attempted) angst, humor, and horror/suspense. -_- Man, talk about combo, and you STILL have no romance…. LOL… wait, young grasshopper, and you shall be rewarded. LOL.

_           Kagomesjewel:_ O_O I'm doing you last because you're like, SO kind to me! ^_^ *hugs* And I NEVER use that for anybody. o_0 *cough* You made my day SO much happier… saying that my time and effort is actually worth something. ^_^ You praise well, my friend…. Heehee. Thank you so much for the compliments. I felt like my ego was going to pop… but you see, my ego isn't big, as stated everywhere, so how big did my ego get before popping? The size of a small, water balloon. *laughs* I hope that was a pretty good description for you. And I'm so sad I can't see your drawings. I don't send my emails to random people. *sigh* I'm just the paranoid type of person. o_0

            Well, I'm done talking here. *wince* I know it was a bit long, but hey, two months here, right? *smiles nervously* I'm so sorry if this sucks, but it feels GREAT that I put in a cliffhanger. *smiles happily before running away* Don't hurt me if you want to see Chapter 8…. LOL.

Kirby [^(^_^)^]: Review my friend's chapter… any complaints *cough* CLIFFHANGER *cough* shall be made to me, so I can rub it in her face. Otherwise, help her poor ego… God knows she needs some sort of ego inflator.

            Me: …. Shut up…. ^_^() Ignore the gum and its mouth. ^_^

            Next chapter: Ready, Set, Aim!

            (Don't ask me when this will be out… I have no idea. ^_^ I'm going over to my cousin's house in the north, so I might be able to regain control over the Internet for a while… but my cousin is really picky about Internet times. *mumble* Heehee…. See you next chapter!


	9. Author's Note

                                                                      Blood-Stained

A/N:

        *clears throat* Attention, all readers on Aisle 4. Blue light special on Aisle 6!

         ^_^ Heehee… that was so cool.

         OK, now for the reason why I have been under dirt for the last MONTH!!! *fanfare trumpets*

         First off, I've started going to the Torture Chamber… er… high school. -_- Yes. I am now 14 (MY BIRTHDAY IS TODAY! SOMEONE DO THE HOKEY POKEY FOR ME!) and going to high school, which is evil.

         So… freshman is a hard year for me. I have a lot of homework and projects (In two weeks, I had four projects already. I'm still getting them by the pounds, actually….), and it's clogging me up.

         Actually, if you really want to see how my weekdays are composed, here it is:

         Monday: Wake up at 5:50 A.M., go to school, receive homework, do some tests/quizzes, and receive projects.

         Tuesday: Odd day. Geometry honors, world history honors, computer science, and English honors.

         Wednesday: Even day. Japanese 1, physical education, computer science, and biology honors.

         Thursday: Odd day. Geometry honors, world history honors, computer science, and English honors.

         Friday: Even day. Japanese 1, physical education, computer science, and biology honors.

Extracurricular Activities: 

Saturday: sleep in (Well, if you had to wake up at 5:50 A.M. every morning for five out of seven days, I think you would want to sleep in, too. =)). Ballet class, come home, sleep some more, or mill around. Do a bit of homework at night.

Sunday: Wake up at 9 A.M. Do a bit more of homework. Mill around for a little bit more. Study for upcoming tests. Go to swimming lessons. Come home to eat. Get Dad to help with geometry homework. Go to sleep early for school.

        -_- And there you have it, my daily schedule. It's uber busy… even though there might be chunks of hours left in between. Oh yeah… and on Friday nights, I have piano lessons for one hour. ^_^

       Yes, I know I should write in between, but I can't force myself to write. o_0 

        OK… that was just ONE reason. -_- My grades are also going a bit down. Ai. So I need to incorporate more studying time. *sigh* As if I don't do enough of that….

         Actually, I need to study for my Visual Basic test tomorrow. 

          But… I DID promise that I would write some bit of 'Blood-Stained' today, since it's my BIRTHDAY! YAY!

           Hehe… hope you all will be happy… because I've developed some sort of lazy, writer's block before every chapter. o_0 I think I'll wait two weeks to see if the new chapters will come pouring out. But in the meantime, just wait until some time in end of October and early November. LMAO… or December. =) I like December lots… especially WINTER BREAK. XD

                                                                                                                                       Nghi

**Mitsuko Maxwell:** O_O Wow… you're so nice to me. I am so flattered, especially when you reviewed the first suspense chapter, Chapter 2, calling me a freak. LOL. I knew I would like you then. ;) Ooh… yeah… I want to see how many people will threaten me. XD Ya want a spoiler? Heehee. *looks around* ¬_¬ Well…. *a screaming truck roars by* ^_^ Hope that will satisfy you for the next three chapters. 

**ChristyKay:** Hehe… dude, you must know that you keep me happy with your occasional, daily reviews, eh? ;) I love them… but I like the ones on-topic even more. LMAO. Heehee… I love Orlando Bloom, too. Hehe… I don't get why people form hate clubs against him. He's very pretty. LOL.

**Maiden of the Moon:** *high fives* I read your horror one! *nods* I don't like spiders. LOL. But I will have to steal that idea from you. XD For stealing my gore, you pay the plagiarism price. LMAO. ;) No, no… don't worry. I'm just kidding. Or am I? ¬_¬

**BabyBuddha:** Coal monkies… hehe. Just like me with my weird fetish with chairs and Kirby. ^_^ Thank you for the compliment! I always try to get people to jump out of their skin.

**Caitlin6767:** Woot! You're so kind to me… I feel so flattered. *blush* LOL. Whee… I'm glad you think it's horrific. As always, I try my best to be freaky. ^_^ Am I succeeding?

**Icefyre:** *is wowed* Wow…. O_O A big author like Maiden of the Moon reviewed my story…. XD OK… so I edged you a bit… but I only requested… I didn't really mean to bother you when you were in the midst of packing up. Heehee… but… wow… that just boosted my ego up to like… a water balloon.

        OK… um… I guess I will answer everyone on the next chapter… at the end of October. LOL.


	10. Gone

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** **1.** **NO MORE UPDATES UNTIL I GET 30 REVIEWS FOR _CHOCOLAT NOIR!!!_** Just joking. But you know you want to read **_Chocolat Noir_** and **_Ascension_**. **2.** Pt. III of **_Ascension _**won't come out until a file transfer is done. **3.** My writing changed a lot, so be prepared. **4.** No more long A/N's, and the chapters are going to be ridiculously short from now on. I can't concentrate on long chapters because I'm always getting stuck. So there.

* * *

**Chapter 8: Gone**

_Nghi_

It was strange as the hand pulled her face into the bitter, rotting pile of limbs and corpses mashed together. Kagome felt her mouth open, and she heard herself scream. But it was an automatic reflex, one she couldn't control. The wave of tears- no, the wave of _weakness_ that had threatened to surface died when the bloodied limb jerked her face into the massive entanglement of hands and decapitated heads. It was strange how even though she felt herself reacting to the situation, she couldn't feel scared. She couldn't feel angry. She couldn't feel _anything_, except for the vitriolic nausea at the irony of the situation. _It_ was coming back to haunt her, and _it_ was bringing everything.

**_Like a museum_**, Kagome thought sickly, and her stomach lurched dangerously. Her voice was keening louder and louder and still growing and then some AYHC members appeared around her. Were they _waiting_- three men were prying on the hand's fingers- for her to free herself? "Get it off me, get it off me, get it off me," she gasped, writhing spasmodically. **_It's just a hand, it's just a hand_**, she told herself over and over again— she was still hyperventilating and she was still chanting the mantra and she was _still_ scared of the blood that surrounded her. It was marvelous how blood could be so wonderful and hateful at the same time.

"It's OK," a man whispered into her ear. Where did he come from? He stroked her shoulders in a comforting manner, and she shut her eyes as a finger grazed her temple. It left something wet and stinging on her neck, and she didn't want to open her eyes to see what it was. "You're going to be fine," he tried again, and she shook her head. Her weakness was coming out, but she could not help it, could never help it. "Just get it off," she shrieked; her voice had gone rough and raw and desperate. Kagome tried to wriggle out of his grasp, but he remained firm and held her there. What was he doing?! She was on the edge, and the craving to cry was making her heart thump wildly. "Don't move- it'll be harder for them."

She made no point in listening and continued to struggle even more; the elbow pressed against her left cheek was beginning to hurt, and someone else's hair was matted against her forehead. It was disgusting and vile and filthy and-and— something hot pricked at the corner of her eyes, and Kagome tried to swallow it down. Suddenly there were too many people around her, and she wanted them to go away. Too many AYHC members, too many bodies, too many dead heads, too many of everything…. Somewhere behind her, Sango's voice came clear in the air, laced with hiccoughs and croaks. "You three, try to help Kagome." The demand came out clear and precise, even though her voice died. "And everyone else- try to move the body away."

It was barely there, but Kagome heard. The woman's tone was slightly uplifting, slightly in demand, and not one bit moping and sallow and hollow. Not one bit mourning. Not one bit runny. Not one bit faithless. Not one bit like _her_. And there she went again, her voice still keening automatically while she reverted into a shell to think over this long and hard. She didn't have to think extensively, though, because the answer was there, hovering unconsciously in the back of her head.

**_And why not?_** Kagome thought, a bit too forcefully. Sango had something to cling onto; this was a chance to turn the hollow crying into smiles and blooming flowers and tears of relief. This was a chance for Sango to reclaim what was lost. This was a chance for Sango to be happy again… something that she never had. It infuriated her, and it was wrong to feel that way. But it infuriated her. Where was her chance when her neighbor appeared headless in her home? Where was her chance when her family hung lifelessly in her apartment? Where was her chance when she saw the woman killed? Where was her chance when Shippo almost slashed her? Where was her goddamn _fuckin'_ chance when he was coming _after_ her?!

All of the burning questions broke the barrier which Kagome had safely built; she hid behind the wall everyday, hoping not to cry and break down, but it finally caught up with her. The three people finally pried open the vice-like grip on her black tresses, and she immediately pushed herself backwards further and further away from the pile until her back pressed against the bloodstained walls. The hot tears danced dangerously around the rim of her lashes, and she shuddered once before curling into a small, secure ball. **_I hope Miroku stays dead_**, her mind sneered hatefully… and then Kagome hated herself for thinking that way.

The man from before kneeled down beside her and rubbed her back in a soothing, circular motion. And all the while, he mistook her frazzled form as a sign of shock and continued to whisper sweet comforts that meant nothing to her. "Don't worry, you're safe now." She shut him out, and soon enough the crystal wetness slid down her cheeks slowly. "Go away," Kagome whispered softly, vehemently, but he did not hear.

Ahead of her, Sango was directing, and there was an aura she emanated- it was her mood, so easily readable and noticeable. And right now, she was hopeful and happy and waiting. There was grunting and panting, and several AYHC members tottered away. It was too hard, they complained, but the headstrong woman roped the slackers back in. The 600 pound woman wasn't budging, and Kagome quickly prayed for her to stay that way, so no one would ever find out what was buried underneath and Sango wouldn't have her ending; it was terribly selfish of her to ask of that. **_Anything. I would do anything to have him dead._**

Her heart thumped dreadfully against her ribcage, and Kagome swallowed heavily. She begged and whimpered and pleaded inside as the body began to inch forward. Why did God hate her? Why did she have to suffer so much? Why did Sango get to have him? Why did Sango get to avoid the hurt and _pain_? Why did Sango get everything that _she_ wanted? Why?!

The last of her anger dissipated as the body banged against the old, wooden floor, and silence stretched across the room. She thought of how the woman could be so lucky and rich in ways that she could not. She thought of how the woman could be so happy and sad in ways that she could not. She thought of how the woman could live and have… and how _she_ could not. Trembling, Kagome bit her lips— the teeth went through the pink flesh, and a metallic taste teased her tongue. **_Just say it, say that he is alive_**, she thought.

It was more than a few minutes- it was ages before one man spoke up in a meek voice. "It was just an arm reacting… and Miroku." Sango sucked in a sharp breath, but that did not stop her from letting out an anguished cry. Several people began to sniff as others patted her shoulders; she continued to cough and sob wretchedly. Kagome imagined his body to be displaced and his good face ruined and his arm gone and his feet broken like brittle twigs. Her shoulders began to shake violently, and her breaths came in gasps. She was just like Sango.

The man thought her to cry over her dead friend, and he patted her quietly, awkwardly. She tasted the salt on her lips and in her mouth as it mixed with the bitter blood, and she began to weep harder, more forcefully. **_No more… no more._**

Kagome believed Sango was thinking the same thing for once.

-


	11. One Step Forward

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** 'www. livejournal. com/ users/ mintflavor' (minus the spaces and quotation marks) gives you updates on whatever I'm writing. And once again- be prepared to be dazzled by the length of the fiction! (Read: short as hell, about 200 words shorter than last time. But hey, faster updates!)

* * *

**Chapter 9: One Step Forward…**

_Nghi_

Shoving through crowds of people pressed up against each other for a glimpse of a Hollywood-esque horror movie scene wasn't easy; she was nearly propelled back to the damn store entrance again, where a few splatters of blood remained on the plastic six-foot logo, unclean. It was sickening how even the red managed to appear in unthinkable places, like a proud mark on territory. Then again, _he_ thought the whole world was his; no one knew it yet, except those who received a bullet in the brain.

She dove between the tightly-packed bodies; who knows how long she was there, crying. Everything was bleeding, and she didn't want to see it, but she was too tired to walk, too tired to stand, too tired to breathe. The walls were pulsating around her, closing in and suffocating, and the man's pathetic insistence all would be fine had only the opposite effect; Kagome cried even harder. Where would she go? What did she have left for it to be unharmed? **_No_**, she thought, **_everything won't be all right_**. And it was true— as long as she was still alive, he would never leave her alone, never let her go. _He_ took her family away; he took her home away; he took her pride away; he took away her _freedom_ away, and she was dying inside this little, iron cage.

Her eyes began to sting again, and she inhaled sharply. With all these people pressed so closely against her, she couldn't afford to start crying again. What had happened to her cold wall? What had happened to her imperturbation? What had happened to her _dignity_? Her eyes welled dangerously, and she stumbled blindly into a strange woman. "Watch where you're going," she hissed, shoving Kagome.

She thought of pushing the woman down.

-

"Eee, Kagome! Where have—" He halted in between the greeting and stared at her. She knew it, expected the reaction. It was the same every time he saw dry blood, and she could see his head spinning furiously. It was pitiable how the emotions played right off his face, and Kagome saw he was thinking about his parents again; it was an instant connection- blood and family.

**_You are a mess after all_**, she said to herself. There was blood in her scalp, dried and clumping. Her face was smeared with the same substance, glued to the side of her cheeks, and her blouse could never be saved with any amount of soap and water. Shippo looked at her stained cheeks and her stained hair and her stained fingers and her stained eyes. He knew what had happened, where it had happened; she had, after all, told him where Miroku worked. Opening the door, Kagome slid into the seat wordlessly and rolled up the window.

He was still staring at her, and she consciously brushed her black, matted hair into something more decent; there were too many knots and curls, and Kagome winced when one caught around her finger. "What happened?" he asked quietly, carefully- he was still petting Buyo, and it was a _controlled_ motion. Shippo learned quickly. "There was an accident at Miroku's restaurant." She fell back onto the old excuse, the same, formulaic answer to the question. Every, single time she appeared by her battered, blue Cadillac, bloody and sore and numb, Shippo would ask again and again. For lack of better parentage, she gave the simplified answer, the one that would hurt the least, the most sugared and sweet. She knew he was smarter than that, and he would probably understand it more than she ever would. But old habits die hard.

"What now?" The minimal conversation was going down the same road again, and they both wondered if it was by conscious or not. Kagome glanced down at her fingers, where the blood and dried skin hid underneath her nails. The combination was disgusting and filthy, and she began to pick at it, trying to rid herself of the sinful debris. Shippo was waiting for an answer, and Kagome stalled for a few moments. His and her shoulders were tensed, almost like she didn't know herself. Finally—"We go to Sango's house to clean up."

Her answer made him freeze; today was different for some reason, there was something else underlying. Why was it unlike all the others towns they've been to? Why weren't they going to go somewhere else and hide? Why weren't they going to save themselves? The start of the engine stirred him out of his stupor, and as Kagome backed out of the parking space, he suddenly startled her with a shriek. It was hard to define or describe the scream- it was a cry of desperation, of mourning, of warning. It was a cry that went against her answer, her decision, her suicide. She slammed on the brakes, and they came to a screeching halt in the middle of the road. "Why?" Shippo yelled, his hands fisting. "_Why_?"

Why? Because Kagome was tired; she didn't want to live as her own shadow… she wanted to scream and run and jump and dance and laugh and look at everything without ever having to suspect behind its innocent face. She didn't want to see the real, gritty, dirty world; she wanted to see innocence in a child's face, the innocence in a flower, the innocence of the people… _she_ wanted to be innocent again. She never wanted to know what the world was like- it was fine to live in ignorance, believing that the world was decent and not full of criminals and burglars and murderers. Kagome wanted to tell him all of this, and more— how she wasn't clean anymore, how _he_ and the world had corrupted her, and she could never be the same. But Shippo would never understand- he was too young, too small, and too good at her own game to ever realize that what they both had before was gone.

He knew she wasn't going to answer. "Why would you _do_ this?!" he demanded. "Why would you _do_ this?! The time is right to go now!"

"But the police…" she murmured, but he cut her off midsentence. "Forget the police— we're good enough! We can go away from here! We can go away and _pretend_, Kagome!" His voice was cracking, and he knew those vain, cowardly words weren't getting to her, were never going to get to her. "I'm too young…."

She would give nothing to the child as he sat there, wiping his nose and petting Buyo furiously; he did nothing wrong, he was terrified, and he had no one left except her. "Don't do this to me, please," he begged, wiping his mouth. His shoulders were shaking, and Shippo valiantly tried to hold back the tears. **_Poor, poor boy_**, Kagome thought, **_it was only a game to him._** And it was; he laughed and heartily played along until something like this happened, and he scampered away from the problem, hoping to leave the mess behind. "I'm sorry," she whispered, beginning to move the car slowly forward again- she would not, could not look at him as the car pressed forward towards Sango's apartment. Shippo pressed his face against Buyo's fur and did not say anything, but she saw the tears dribble at the edge of his chin, where the cat's fur caught the sparkling dew drops. The cat's response was to mew pathetically, and Kagome blinked with dry eyes.

Something precious was breaking apart….

-


	12. Two Steps Back

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** How's the story coming along for you guys? Is it better with faster updates, but smaller content? I know my writing changed a whole lot from the last time I've updated. Tell me your opinion in a review!

* * *

**Chapter 10: Two Steps Back**

_Nghi_

Shippo must hate her, she realized. Driving back to Sango's apartment was quiet, and the little monster always had something important to say; it was in his and every child's nature. The littlest things kept his interest, and surely by now he must have been captivated by the car lighter— he had been eying it for some time now. But against his character, Shippo did not speak and nor did he look at her. Kagome couldn't tell if he was angry and disappointed and scared by her answer, or he didn't want to see her in this state. It was never subtle at all, the small signs he unconsciously performs when a dead body surfaced- the little twitch in his hand, the slight flinch in his shoulders, his tense expression, and how he averted those sparkling emerald eyes away from the mess, away from the grim stares from the police, and onto something more happy. **_He is in denial._**

Pulling up against the bank of the grass, Kagome pulled out her keys. "Do you want to come in?" She was in no way apologetic for her stanch decision; she never wanted this in the first place, and she didn't want to keep _being_ here. She was fighting back, and it was his choice whether or not he would continue running from the problem. Shippo didn't answer, and Buyo mewled pathetically, still within his clutch. "Fine. You stay here and watch Fatty from escaping out the window or pressing on the gas pedal."

The blood had dried everywhere, from underneath her fingernails to the flakes that were playfully scattered across her arm. It was like mud, dirty and clingy and brown. But it was a different kind of dirt, a whole world different than earth…. Her skin crawled, and the itch began to emerge, more horribly than last time. A thousand hot needles pricked the back of her neck, and she jerked spasmodically. Slamming the door, Kagome marched into the apartment complex, her fingers leaving bright red welts along her forearms.

Her fingers had curled around the golden doorknob when she heard a small voice and her name. It was Shippo, his head peeking out from the window. "You're making a big mistake." He stared at her while she licked her lips once, twice, and then let an unsure smile play across her face.

"It's a _good_ mistake," Kagome said, before letting the door shut behind her silently.

-

Something was amiss when she entered the apartment— the oak door swung open on quiet hinges, and she realized it had not been locked. It was very strange, because she remembered dimly of Sango telling her how safety was paramount over anything else. So why would…?

**_Oh, no._** Kagome sucked in a breath noisily— her hands trembled slightly, and her legs shifted, automatically towards the exit. It was unconscious, a habit she didn't realize she had. Then her mind thought of Shippo and what happened in the car, and she tried to quell the overriding dread in her stomach. There was a quiet thrumming in her ear, something from an Edgar Allen Poe poem, and it began to buzz louder and louder and louder until it was kicking and screaming, leaving behind a reverberating echo. Sango had… he reached… how in such a short amount of time?

She should look and prod around, but what if he attacked her from behind? What if he slit her throat? What if he shot her with a simple, clean bullet? What if he paralyzed her? What if he gouged out her eyes and ripped out her lips and mouth? So many images flitted through her mind, and she nearly buckled as an intense wave of nausea threatened to cough itself out.

**_I'm too afraid_**, Kagome thought, and she turned around, ready to walk out— but her hand wouldn't let go the doorknob, and she knew she would never let herself down if she walked away from here, away from the _chance_ to hurt the man, away from the _chance_ to avenge, away from the _chance_ to live again. **_Besides_**— she swallowed heavily— **_I will give Shippo something to live for_**. If she killed _him_, he would never have to be afraid, never have to hide again. If she died, she knew he would come forward to publicly find the man. That much, she could expect from him. Taking a deep breath, Kagome turned around once more and entered the flat meekly.

The white carpet was stained, and the chandeliers were shattered, its remains scattered colorfully across the floor; they broke underneath her white pumps, which were no longer white. The couch was shredded in a comical fashion, cotton springing up from the velvety seats and springing eagerly forward. Tables were overturned, and the once elegant fireplace was ruined, tattered and colored. Everything was always colored red, she thought grimly. There was a whimper down the hall, and she stopped walking, stopped thinking, stopped breathing. It could be _him_ now, and she didn't want to risk the chance of him barging into the living room, swinging his maniacal ax. In all of her pep talk, her rallying, her supposed courage, her seeming indifference to life or death, she _did_ care, and she didn't want to die. Not now, not when Shippo needed her! She did not care for hypocrisy or for traitorous thoughts- she wanted to come out alive, and her knees were badly knocking against each other when the keening grew louder. She should leave, run out of the apartment, jump into the car, and hide in the next town— Shippo was right, what was she thinking? How could she ever have thought of pulling this off without hurting herself? Freedom wasn't as important as living- she had been getting cocky, and she was sure _he_ wanted her to become just that. But she would do the exact opposite and—

Something heavy smashed against the wall, and the crying became an angry yell. If it weren't for such a startle, Kagome would have bailed altogether. As it was, the object had crashed melodiously, and she knew it wasn't like _him_ to put up with crying or tantrums. She edged quietly towards the door at the end of the hall, the one with the crack open. The pandemonium grew more, and Kagome thought she recognized the warbled voice. **_Could it be…?_**

The door opened with a loud creak, and Sango was lying in a heap in all her glory. Inuyasha was crouched, and he glanced up tiredly at the intruder- his mouth curled in disgust at her. "What are you doing here?" he spat, and Kagome flinched at the unhappy tone. The woman lifted her matted face to see her with dried blood flakes, and she began to cry again, louder. "No…."

"You're filthy, _human_." His tawny eyes were icy, angry, and flickering pain. "I came from the—" Sango cried even harder, her body wracking with warped sobs, and she was all but forgotten. "Ssh." Inuyasha ignored the lifeless woman by the doorframe. "Get up and change. You're a mess."

"_No!_" She retreated from his extended hand and curled against her chest. "H-how can you say that, Inuyasha?" She wept bitterly. "H-how can you say that, when h-he's-"

The man inhaled sharply and shifted on the balls of his foot. "Sango, _please_ get up. You've been crying all this time." He did not blink as she rasped something incoherent and threw the tissue box at his head; it was neatly evaded, and he retreated it a few moments later. "Stop this," he pleaded, his eyes sparkling sadly, and Kagome began to feel the green bug again. "You know—"

"Stay out of this," Inuyasha snapped, his eyes boring holes into her head, and she was suddenly frustrated. She was trying to help, and he pushed her aside like she did not matter? Sango's fists made hollow thumps against the floor as she found solace in the crook of her arm, and Kagome felt wildly jealous. This woman was truly a baby, she decided angrily. There was someone to take care of her, to watch after her, to _worry_ for her, and _she_ had nothing. Even when Sango had lost someone, there would always be another person to see for her, and she was still crying? Did she know how lucky she was, to have someone her like this? Kagome clenched her fists as Sango threw another vase against the wall, effectively creating a smashed hole. "I can't _go_ on," she sobbed pathetically, her head shaking and her nose running and her mouth turned far down. "I don't _want_ to go on…."

**_Disgusting_**, Kagome thought. It was always like this- someone else having the things she wanted. _She_ wanted someone to watch over her, she wanted no obligations, she wanted to be fearless. **_But we can't get everything we want, now can we?_** She thought savagely. What had happened to the strong woman? The woman with the determination? The woman with the sharp tongue? The woman who had endured years of military training? In the end, it was for naught, because she was reduced to this-this _sniveling_ creature. **_Disgusting_**, she thought again, feeling more jealous than before.

"Sango, please-"

"_Leave me alone!_" she screamed more fitfully. "You don't _know_ how much it's hurting, how much it's _killing_ me…."

Inuyasha snapped, and his hands retracted from her shoulders like burnt charcoals. "Don't you _ever_ say that." The woman ignored him and continued crying, and he glared at her back before finally standing up- he brushed past Kagome, barely flitting an eyelash at her. "It hurts _me_, too, Sango," he said quietly before disappearing into another room.

She was left standing there, watching dumbly as the woman writhed- Sango heard his words, and the salt dewdrops fell and splashed loudly. "You don't deserve this," Kagome whispered more to herself.

"And you don't deserve Inuyasha, either."

-


	13. Vain

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** Everything is deliberate, from the angst to the bitterness to the pity to everything. Hehehe. Oh, and I remember dimly about me reaching one hundred reviews before chapter eight- we totally reached that and beyond! Thank you so much for helping me! My new goal is to reach **300** before the end of the story, so please help!

* * *

**Chapter 11: Vain**

_Nghi_

She didn't want to stand around Sango any more— the drama was giving her a headache, and even though he had pushed her aside, Kagome couldn't help but feel sorry for the crap Inuyasha had to go through. Turning her back away from the woman, she shuffled down the hall, peering through each room for the dog-eared man. He was not in the kitchen or in the living room, and Kagome found him not inside the apartment, but lounging outside, his face unreadable. "What do you want?" He was not like any other person she has met on account that he was nasty and rude to her like there was no tomorrow.

"Nothing," Kagome hastily replied with a waving hand. "I wanted to get away from Sango, that's all." Inuyasha made a face, and she wondered why he was so offended. "It's not that I don't like her," she rushed, "But I just can't stand the way she is right now, just lying on the floor and refusing help and—"

"Shut up," he sneered again, his eyes flickering coldly. "You don't know _anything_ about us- you've only been here for a few days. You don't know what she's going through." It was a bucket of cold water, and she felt frustration beginning to build up quickly. Not know how Sango felt? _Not_ know! "Excuse me," Kagome said icily, "but _you_ don't know me, either. So don't—"

"And I'm sure you've gone through heartache, too," he mocked, and she exploded. How dare some incompetent man say she know nothing of how Sango felt! How dare some pretty boy just enter the picture and tell her that she doesn't know anything about heartache, about sorrow, about _pain_! How dare some-some rat tell her that she was incapable of feeling how the woman felt, crying pettily over a man like spilled milk! How _dare_ he! "You pompous, self-absorbed jerk… and here I was, feeling sorry for you. Shut up and listen!" Kagome snapped when he started to interrupt. "You don't _know_ me, you've never _lived_ with me… hell, you don't even know where I _come_ from. So don't _ever_ begin with 'oh, Kagome, you don't know what's going on' or 'you'll never understand how she's feeling'. You don't know what I've gone through to be here, so stop being such a prick!" It felt really nice to remove that off her chest, to vent her anger on someone else.

"You don't know what Miroku and Sango had, bitch." She knew his pride was wounded, and the insult was his way of retaliation. "You don't know why it's breaking her apart, and you don't know why it's making her act like this. If you knew, maybe _you_ wouldn't so much of an arrogant bitch, either." Inuyasha would not say what it was- he folded arms and stared stonily ahead. They could hear more breaking sounds inside the apartment.

"Let me guess- they had a thing for each other, right?" Kagome stated— sarcasm was seeping into her voice, and when he wouldn't answer, she guessed right. "They wouldn't admit it, but they had an infatuation with each other. Sango would always say, 'Oh, Miroku? I hate him. He's such a pervert. He's so promiscuous.' But deep down, she liked him. _Really_ liked him. Is _that_ what the two had, the thing that I would never understand?"

"That is a lot more than what you usually know," Inuyasha ignorantly replied, and a voiceless scream begged and clawed its way up from her throat. "I have felt _more_ than you could ever know," she muttered darkly, her eyes flashing furiously- the clamor in the apartment heightened. "I lost so much more than her, I cried so much more than her, I died a long time ago… do you think anyone cared for me? Was there anyone who picked me up to care for me? Why should I give Sango anything?"

He had stood up, his body halfway inside the flat. "Get over it. You're not the only one who suffered."

The door shut in her face.

-

Not the only one who suffered…? She seethed and she trembled and she balled her fists. He made her out to be someone vying for sympathy the entire time. **_I do not do that!_** It had _never_ been her intention to do that, and she had _never_ done that before… had she? Kagome hated him and his stupid remarks and his stupid thinking and his stupid sneer and his stupid eyes and his stupid self! Why wasn't he nice to her like everyone was? Why did he have to go out of his way to be rude and push her around? The people she met and encountered- they were always nice, even if she never returned the compliment or conversation. But he… _he_ was different— he thought she was worthless, and it was infuriating to know that he thought so little of her. Not the only one who suffered? Of _course_ Kagome knew that— there were homeless people, and there were people who lost their family… **_like me_**, she thought, and something dim rang in her head at the familiarity of the word. Family. _Family_. It still hurt sometimes, and she realized she never did lose herself to this new person, to this new Kagome who was everything she never had been.

Pushing the door open, Kagome marched back to the car. It was dusk, almost seven o'clock, and she was still dirty, bloody, and grimy. The car was still parked in the same space, and the windows were rolled up— finally, something peaceful for once. "Shippo?" she called, rapping on the window. "It's me, Kagome. Can you unlock the door?" There was no reply, no muffled squealing, no face pressed against the window, and she tried again. "Shippo? Please open the door- it's getting really dark out here." Nothing for the next few minutes. "Shippo. Shippo. _Shippo!_" Panicking was a second nature to her, and today would not disprove that proclivity of hers. "Shippo, are you there?" What if _he_ came for the child while she was inside the building? What if he was hanging on the roof of her car, unseen and dead? Why didn't she force him to come with her into the apartment? Why was she so _careless_ in everything? God knows he was the only thing she had left for living, and if he was ever taken away—

The little boy's face popped up, haggard and unkempt, and all worries disappeared. Everything was fine again. "Oh, _there_ you are. I guess you must have fallen asleep. Don't scare me like that next—"

"I'm not letting you in," he said flatly through the window crack at the top. Kagome blinked a few times before smiling uncomfortably. "Haha, that's really funny! But really. It's getting dark and—"

"Not until you take back what you said." She picked it up instantly at what he wanted, and the grin drooped. "I-I can't." Was her shaky reply, and his dark green eyes glinted from behind the window. "Then _I_ can't open the door." Buyo sat next to him and put a reassuring paw against the glass— Shippo picked him up and carried him into the backseat and away from his owner.

It was amazing how cunning children could be. "Wait," she called shrilly." Come back, Shippo, please! Open the door! Don't leave me here…." Her hands pulled at the door handle tremulously, and she wished he was just joking, yanking her chain. "Shippo! _Shippo!_" No response. "Open the door! Open the—" Kagome choked on the last word and coughed. How was he so cold to her, the person who looked after him all this time? **_But you did inadvertently kill his parents._** Traitorous thoughts leaked into her mind, and she found it not too hard to believe that Shippo _could_ turn away from her, even from all the help. She was trying so hard all this time, trying to make up for his parents' unnecessary death, trying to ensure some morals in the immoral lifestyle, trying to be a good _parent_. But, Kagome supposed bitterly, it wasn't enough.

She was kneeling on the gravel, her head against the smooth exterior of the car. "Please…?" She expected silence, no answer, no reply, nothing- she was right. He didn't come to unlock the door, and she knew he was asleep, with Buyo tucked safely under his arm. Her throat was too scratched out to cry, her mind too tired to think, her legs too tired to walk, and her eyes too tired to cry- she closed them instead. Didn't Shippo know that Kagome loved him? Didn't he know that she cared for him? Didn't he know that she was breaking inside?

Probably not, she mused- he knew that she was a backstabber. He knew that she was stupid for taking away his happiness. He knew that she was trying to endanger him by staying here. He knew that she was pitiful, always getting into trouble and crying. He knew that she was inconsistent, never able to keep up a constant lifestyle.

He knew that she wasn't good enough to take care of him.

-


	14. What Comes Around

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** Hmm… well, finals are coming up, and strangely, the thought of a chemistry test with all prior knowledge learned in the past year put into one test with 100 questions that could range from molarity to molality to entropy to even safety equipment does not scare me. Maybe the night before the test…?

By the way, if Blood-Stained was ever made into a movie, do you think anyone would watch it? I know I wouldn't, because I'd probably shit the pants out of me. (Haha!)

**Chapter 12: What Comes Around….**

_Nghi_

* * *

It was humid that night, and even more mosquitoes flying around and looking for fresh blood. She shrunk away from a particular big one as it landed beside her ear and onto the smooth, white exterior of her car. Insects were disgusting, and she hated them; she remembered a long time ago when a bee had stung her in the eye, sending her to the hospital, and shivered slightly. Bugs were vermin. Filthy. Nasty. **_Much like him…._**

Suddenly the thought of being stranded outside with no one or nothing was there, dawning in her little head, and she realized just how vulnerable she was in that position. Her ribcage rattled nervously, and her breathing seemed to quicken by more than just a little bit. **_There is no one here_**, she told herself unconvincingly. **_But just to make sure…._** Kagome glanced behind her and saw nothing. "See? You are letting it get to you," she said aloud, as if it were a barrier of protection. But it was dark, and there were no streetlights, and there were no cars, and all the houses seemed to be cloaked in black, and Inuyasha and Sango seemed to be hiding upstairs, and suddenly there were no _noises_ anymore.

Kagome held her breath, afraid of breaking the silence. A bead of sweat trickled down the side of her cheek, and her vision began to double—no, triple! A little headache began to work its way at the back of her head, and she valiantly swallowed it down. Not another panic attack- not when shewasn't in the safe confinements of her car, not when she couldn't be safe, and certainly not when she couldn't _feel_ safe…! But then again, when was the last time she had felt truly sheltered from anything at all…?

**Go.**

Her head snapped to the side as she looked frantically for someone who had said that- there was no one. Before she could look around any further, something lashed out from beneath the car and

grabbed

her

**wrist**.

It was surreal, watching something dark and muffled from the shadows of the trees latching onto her hand, but then time became reality once more as she felt the world collapse on top of her for the second time that day, and Kagome cried as it attempted to pull her underneath the car, armless or not. She could only attempt a feeble noise as it jerked _again_ and _again_, nearly wrenching the bone out of her socket. **_Why can't I scream!_** She dimly thought over the agonizing pain. A breathless wheeze caught in her throat as the side of the car began denting from the force.

_Cr­­_—There was a small, internal sound of bone beginning to break, cracking under pressure, and something began to flicker at the pit of her stomach. Then it flared, spreading itself across her body, and she found herself screaming, her voice guttural but loud. "No—let me go! Let. Me._ **Go**!_" And she was suddenly fighting back, trying to wrestle her arm free—there was a louder snap, and the feeling of courage dissipated as fast as it had come, and Kagome realized just who was winning in the situation. No one had heard her yell for two seconds, she realized with a sinking feeling, and whoever it was down there... he knew it, too. The paranoia and fear and hell that she had suppressed was biting back, jostling her stomach rather dangerously, and she felt nauseous, sick. The hand yanked her back again, and as she tried to scurry forward, trying to defy whoever it was, Shippo's muffled voice from the inside of the car carried out strong and steadfast. "Go away, Kagome- _stop_ acting."

**_But I'm not…!_** She felt her guts blown out by his tone, and the tears began to course down her face. "Let me go… _please_," she sobbed as the hand jerked her against something sharp and protruding. "Shippo, help me! I'm not pretending!" she pleaded, banging lightly on the door- he continued to ignore her, and she shrieked as the sharp metal from scratched more than just skin.Kagome's shoulder was bleeding, and the ligaments were torn and beginning to look like a certain familiar scene way, way back. **_I don't want to die… I don't want to die- I take it back! I didn't—_**

The front door of the apartment complex opened, and Inuyasha came out with a trash bag over his shoulders. The hand immediately releasedits grip and retreated, and a second later, something dark and shadowed slipped out from underneath the car, easily slipping in between the silhouettes' cracks. She was too numb to see anything, and after struggling to get out from in between the car's wedge, fell heavily onto the pavement.

It was a second too late for Inuyasha tospot her on the ground, the side of hervehicle ruined with spattered blood everywhere. "Fuck," he swore, dropping the bag, and in a moment, he was at her feet, touching her arm tentatively."What the hell...?"A cool touch to the head, and Kagome's vision sharpened enough to catch an outline of his broad jaw. Her good hand began scratching weakly at his sleeve for a good hold, and she began shaking. "Over there- he—ran—disappeared—vision," she mumbled inarticulately.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded, and in the time it took Kagome to well with frustration at such a stupid question, he had stood up and promptly punched out a window, sending coarse-sized sprinkles of glass all over the car's inside. "Hey, you brat, look at your caretaker…." She flinched,her handgroping thetires to reach a sitting position, and all the while there were indignant shrieks and meows bubbling out. She was trying to stand on both feet now and was almost there, rocking precariously on the soles of her feet. And as Kagome lifted herself off the floor, her eyes almost rolled to the back of her head from too much exhaustion and too little blood circulation, she caught a pair of onyx eyes, glittering dully- they were part of a tree, oddly, and she didn't think she had ever seen any tree with eyes until it hit her. When shehad seen_him_,the color of his eyes had been... Kagome made a soft, choked gasp, but it was drowned out by Inuyasha and Shippo. "—it was _her_ fault for making bad decisions!" the little kitsune was saying, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"What the hell do you mean by 'bad decisions'?"

"None of your business, but I'm not letting her drag me into her stupid do-good attitude! It could get both of us ki—" he cut off his ownsentence, frowning.

"Both of you _what_?" Inuyasha asked roughly.

The boy glared vehemently at the man. "I told you, none of your business! And anyways, what right do you have to break the window glass? You could have hurt me!" He turned his head the other way, in Kagome's direction, and her broken form greeted him.

**_It-it can't be…._** She did not see his green eyes widen at her, and nor did she see them soften with guilt and worry. She did not see the childish tears welling up at the corners, and she did not see him look over at Inuyasha. "… Kagome, what—" She lost her footing at the moment, tripping over a small pebble, and Inuyasha was there to catch her. "Oi," he muttered, "you're bleeding all over the place."

"_Him_," she garbled, and suddenly the eyes disappeared… but then there was a shadow moving quietly down the street, fast and quick as it turned at the corner, and she became hysterical, kicking and screaming. "He's there! He's there!" she shrilled, waving a pointed finger. And all the while, blood was quickly staining everything- the grass, his shirt, her shirt, the car….

"Calm down, Kagome, get a grip on yourself," Inuyasha muttered, struggling to keep himself from dropping her onto the gravel.

"Calm _down_?" she shouted in his face, her eyes widening. Was he _mad_? "He is _here_. He was there! Right there, in the tree's shadow! He just disappeared at the corner- the corner!" She was hyperventilating, some logical part of her tried to reason, but everything was too disoriented- today, the events, everyone- it was too much for her toact anything butlike someone who had been scared out of her wits.

"Who is 'he'!" Inuyasha demanded, trying to restrain her, but she had tuned his questionsout by now, and there was a faint tremor running through her body. **_He's here… and he's waiting. I know it._**

Shippo knew what she was getting at, and all the color had drained of his face. She did not see him run into the middle of the car and duck under the blanket, trembling terribly, but Inuyasha did, and he looked back to her wide eyes, her jumbled words, and her frenzied nods. "Does Shippo know anything going on here?" he inquired suspiciously, and she suddenly exploded with frustration. Why wouldn't anyone understand? _He_ was here, and she had seenhim up close_for the first time_!

"He's here, he's here—"

"Kagome."

"He's waiting—"

"_Kagome_."

Anger overrode her again, and she found herself shouting as loudly as possible, as ifInuyasha was deaf. "Are you stupid! _He_ was the one who did _this_ to me!To my life!_He_ was the onewhokilled Miroku! _He_ was the one whokilled Sango!"A strange waver passed through his golden eyes,and she thoughtshe had him. "I'll show him to you!" Then Kagome's hand was intertwined with his, and she was running down the street, down the same path that the shadow had taken, and Inuyasha was stumbling along. "Kagome, stop it," he said, trying to free himself without hurting her. "You're crazy- there was nothing there in the first place."

A feeling of dread began to prick at the back of her neck, and she ignored it. **_Crazy…? I am not… I saw him, just like I saw all the blood in my apartment and the day HE killed that woman. How can you say I'm crazy when I saw it with my own eyes?_** "No, no, I saw him," she insisted, dragging him along.

They turned the corner, and there was nobody—just like she suspected. "He knew we were coming," she explained matter-of-factly, and continued to head further into the street. Up ahead, she thought she saw something shiny, almost like a twinkle. "He's there!" She never, _ever_ wanted to see him again… but for some reason, Kagome had to make Inuyasha _believe_- no, _see_… and _touch_. It had to be tangible to be real, and if _he_ was intent on killing her, _he_ was going to have a hell of a time doing it. **_You can't hurt me if I. can. see. YOU._**

The hand in hers twisted itself free, and she had to stop walking to turn around… and nearly toppled to the ground. Suddenly her vision wasn't so good…. "He walked into that alley!" she said, shaking her head to smooth out her perception. "Just a little bit more, I promise!"

"_Stop it_!" Inuyasha barked, pushing her bloodied hands away. "There is _nothing_."

She reeled back, and immediately the guilt was apparent on his face. "As much as I'd love to beat the bastard to death, you're _bleeding_ everywhere, and if you don't get medical help, you will _die_."

**_I don't care_**, she thought defiantly, but her mouth moved on its own accord. "I'll come back, but justlook a little bit."

"No," he said curtly. "You and I both know you'remakingthis up, and not to mention theyour losing an insane amount of blood. You need to come back _now _and let Sango help you. She has more practice with this kind of thing." This time, his clawed hands moved to grab her elbow, whether she wanted it or not. She would have pushed it away, but too much blood loss had made her queasy and dizzy, and she didn't know if there were two or three hands making its way for her arm.

She found herself being dragged backwards with no strength to fight, and she began crying. Why didn't he believe her, dammit! "He's there, I know it," she said, struggling to stay conscious.

"Will you _shut_—" He was cutoff as she passed out just then.

-


	15. Sweet Dreams

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** Just a note, but I'm done with school on the 24th. (Nooo….) Also, finals are next week, **Christykay** has nominated me for fanfiction elimination, I'm going on a cruise on the 26th, I'm going to a farewell party on the 18th, a reunion party on the 23rd, a birthday party on the 24th, and the part in the last chapter where it talked about 'Sango being killed' was figuratively. She's still alive, people… just, a _little_ bit emotionally wounded. (cough)

**Chapter 13: Sweet Dreams**

_Nghi_

* * *

In her dream, she saw those black eyes; they were above her, staring down on top of her and watching and never blinking. She herself was always running, walking, moving somewhere, but those dark, dilated pupils followed everywhere, and slowly they began to close in on her. She tried to scream, but no voice came out—just silent air. Eventually, they cornered her in a small, sightless corner of the darkness, and suddenly the eyes became jarred, morphing into a shadow against a shadow and casting a dark, sweeping wind against her. 

And then it was two feet away from her, and she could see the skewed face of _him_, ugly and twisted and grinning madly. He had such pointy, glaring teeth-no, fangs, and he was edging closer and closer, and his gangly, little arms were spreading wider and wider, stretching themselves to entrap her, and he was _so_ ugly and _so_ frightening and _so_ scary and _so_ threatening and—

"_—nightmare._"

—he was coming closer, and he held a small handgun, and she watched, her vision of him blurring slightly, as he raised his hand—

"—_sure how long she's going—_"

—and then Kagome squeezed her eyes shut as he leveled it at her head, and _he_ cackled, and those black, black onyx eyes had become holes in the head as he _pulled the trigger_.

There was a deafening shot ringing in her dreams, and before she knew it, the bullet was embedded deep within her head, and she was bleeding on the ground, dying as the copper pellet easily slipped through the hard skull, pulling along torn, bleeding flesh—some were gray, and some were red, pulsating as the bullet exploded through the back of her head, tearing patches of hair and blood and anything else that got in its way.

In her dream, she still heard him laughing.

"_No_!"

Her arms were useless and unmoving, and there was a heavy weight around her stomach and pelvis. She couldn't breathe anymore, and she was scared. **_So this is how it feels to die…._**

"—_hurting her_."

Then something cold and icy pierced her forehead, and suddenly she felt herself (or was it spirit? Kagome was never the religious type.) being pulled away from the surrealism, away from the slipping corpse, away from the madman, away from the bullet, away from the sickening laughter, away from the darkness—

And her gray eyes snapped open. Kagome gave a loud shudder once, her back arching—**_where am I!_** Everything was too dark for her, but it didn't matter; she couldn't see in the first place anyways. Something was roaring in her ears—her blood, perhaps. She discovered there _was_ something burdening around her pelvic area, and immediately the nightmare of _him_ and that too-real gun was plaguing her memory again. Fear shot through her stomach, pushing away all thoughts except one: _survive_.

Suddenly Kagome was bucking around wildly, pulling and twisting her arms in an attempt to throw off whoever it was. She was very much unaware of how impulsive her actions were, and the thought of cool metal pushed softly against her temple, waiting and ready to explode… the _awareness_ that anything was possible when she could not see made her even more paranoid. Those claw-like ropes were bound tight, and she began to panic at their refusal to loosen. "Help!" Kagome screamed, "Someone!"

"Calm down—" Whoever it was, he was the one sitting on top of her, and suddenly the image of the deranged man came to her, his mouth but never his eyes smiling wickedly. She had never heard him speak at all; every sighting of _him_ was from a speckled distance, like a silent movie gone horribly wrong. And even now, she thought his voice was too different… too rich and vivid for such a hollow and malicious person. **_But I have no way of really knowing that._**

Something stung on her shoulder- she couldn't tell which was left and right with her nerves all numb and dead- and everything that had passed through her mind went away, and any small doubt that _he_ wasn't within the proximity of her was pushed away, erased and gone. Kagome thrashed harder, kicking and screeching, her eyes screwed shut. All she could envision was a sharp butcher knife leaning over hungrily at the edge of her shoulder bone, and _his_ face leering so closely, just like in her nightmare. "_Don't touch me_!" she shrieked, "Don't touch me!"

"No—"

"Don't kill me, please!" She begged like a dog, and all those past intentions of standing up for herself, putting him down, and being strong were forgotten, like all those sane thoughts and doubts—

**Gone**.

"Dammit, stop—"

"I didn't do anything!" she yelled, tears leaking out. "I didn't see anything, I swear! I didn't see anything… I _won't_ see anything if you don't want me to! Just don't hurt me!" When she found her breath was actually becoming slightly ragged, all her fears came tumbling into her conscience, branding images of blood and decapitation and missing fingers and legs and bullets and a ruined family; her heartbeat was smashing against her ribcage, the blood now more than a whistle of a scream in her ears, and perspiration mixing with frightened tears as she lost all control. "_I didn't see anything I didn't see anything I didn't see anything! It was a dream, and I wasn't there. You didn't kill the girl and I didn't see you with the gun. I didn't see anything I swear I didn't just don't. hurt. me._" Something struck the back of her head, and then there was a painful throbbing—where the bullet should have been. **_Oh, oh, I don't think he listened to me—_**

"Thank God…."

Something cool dabbed at her shoulder, and she squirmed a bit. Kagome was reduced to crying softly, and she thought numbly **_–I think he just killed me already._**

Someone murmured quietly above her, but her dim hearing couldn't make anything out of it. Then a calloused finger touched a spot at her neck, and she was plunging back into the strange, dark world, back where _he_ was waiting for her….

Inuyasha exhaled in relief as the girl fell unconscious- Sango had ordered him to put her to sleep _not_ when she had raked several big scratch welts across his arm, _not_ when he had to hold her down to prevent her from landing any uppercuts to either one of them, _not_ when she had managed to drag both him and her two feet from the makeshift bed in the struggle, but _after_ Kagome had accidentally collided headfirst against the sharp edge of the coffee table. He silently moved her back onto the cot, trying hard not to leave behind a trail of blood. Sango blanched at the stained carpets and excused herself quietly into her room- Inuyasha didn't stop her as the doors to the bedroom closed, and he tried to ignore the silent shudders and weeps that followed. Instead, he looked down at the bloodstained girl, her breathing becoming irregular; she was having a nightmare, he realized.

"What _is_ she thinking?" Inuyasha wondered aloud.

-


	16. Bring Me Back

**Blood-Stained**

**A/N:** Look who came back today!

Kirby: _She_ found _me_ and brought me back here, actually.

And then I dressed you up as a decapitated head! It's not entertainment, I swear- strictly business.

Kirby: I _hate_ you.

I love _you_, yes I do! (huggles)

**Chapter 14: Bring Me Back**

_Nghi_

* * *

Kagome woke up in the afternoon two days later, smelling like body oil and sweat; her shoulder had been bandaged securely with a tourniquet, as she later discovered when a spasm of pain rippled across her chest when she attempted to turn over her side. She was drawing a blank until glimpses of dried blood speckled all over her shirt and arms caught her watering eyes, and hazy flashes of a hiding cloaked figure came to mind. She shuddered at how close it had been for _him_ to permanently catch her if it hadn't been for… **_Inuyasha._**

She froze as the vague recollections of two nights ago morphed into a full, horrific memory. It was like a bad nightmare—the first time _he_ had _actually_ touched her, physically harmed her himself. And then just like that, _he_ disappeared when Inuyasha had emerged from inside the apartment, fleeing into the darkness for protection and-and power.

Kagome curled into a small ball, draping the covers closer to her; it felt safe, like he could not see her if she could not see him. **_But WHY did he run away like that?_** She was too curious, as having never seen him do many things, and one of them included running away. So of all things, of all time, why did he not outright kill her? **_HE is powerful… very capable._**

"Is it possible—" she cut herself off quickly; he was watching her, watching for thinking patterns and signs, for any devious plans…. She didn't want to face him alone after that night's near-death confrontation. It was too risky to say anything; somehow- and she did not know the 'how'- he always seemed to know where and when she would do something. **_I don't want him to come near me again. Ever. Especially when I am alone._**

Alone. She shivered, burrowing deeper underneath the fluffy cocoon. It was no surprise Kagome had developed a morbid fear of being by herself for more than five minutes. They had a term for that in psychology- it was called monophobia, and it had elevated to such great heights that she often had a case of panic attack if even left in a bathroom alone.

**_Alone. How horrible. To die alone. To be alone. To lose alone. To—_** And then it struck her out of nowhere, like a bright streak of lightning, and for the first time in many months, since all this had started, Kagome began to grasp something important, paramount, and chief about _him_:

**_He likes to isolate._**

The strange thing was that it _was_ true, and it had happened to many times in the past. Isolation was the key to _him_, she realized, greedily swallowing up this newfound revelation. The innocent brunette she had seen him kill that night— **_alone._** Mr. Tsuyo, her wacky, 80's-lovin' neighbor— **_alone._** Her family, all living in the deserted outskirts of the city—**_alone._** Alone, alone, alone, they were _all_ separated from big crowds of people. And just as quickly, she connected this concept to the car, and it was the most perfect explanation as to why he had fled when Inuyasha turned up.

**_HE has a weakness._**

She was almost proud of herself for having figured out such an important detail. How had she overlooked such a faulty aspect to him? How had she let him get away with everything without trying to crack through his logic? **_I don't have to physically fight against him- I am equally as smart as he. No- I am smarter._**

Kagome felt truly powerful, a first in a long time. Finally, an Achilles' heel she could strive to develop and, eventually, divide and conquer. "If he can do it, what's stopping me?" she asked rhetorically. For a moment, it was like old times, where she was not some terrified coward who fled every time something dreadful occurred. For a moment she felt like an actual force to be reckoned with, a considerable foe and not a stringed puppet for _his_ entertainment. She smiled happily, shifting her head onto the center of the pillow.

Something soft crinkled underneath the cushion, and she stopped, confused. **_What was that?_** Maybe it was just imagined, and Kagome squirmed around again, trying to find a comfortable way for her head to rest. **_Stupid tourniquet—_**

Whatever it was, it made another crinkle again, and she sighed loudly, visibly annoyed. Using her good arm she patted underneath the pillow, and her eyes unconsciously rolled as her hand came forth with a folded paper in hand. "God, if they wanted to talk to me, why couldn't they just leave the note beside my head?" she muttered. "Having to be so discreet all the time…." She wasn't really angry—there was an actual highlight in her life after so many months, and she refused to let anything ruin her elation. "Let's see what they wrote here…."

**I KNOW WHAT YOU SAW.**

It was never old- no, not for her. Time and time again, she had always expected a note to appear, and it would never do so until she had let her guard down. This was no exception as an ancient feeling, habitually pounded down by a sickening form of tradition, escaped from the buried hatchet, and her hands _actually_ began to tremble rather fervently. It was always the same every time- some form of self-knowing sentence that proved that this _was_ real, and she was stuck in deranged reality. But now… _now_—

**_He was here._**

It was sick, almost to the point of nausea… to think that _he_ was in this room, having planted the note right under her head, so close to her, could have touched her, could have stroked her cheek, her hair, could have done _anything_….

Kagome whimpered, the note in her hand slipping out of her clutch. Why now, of all times? Why did he always manage to find some way to terrorize her back into the corner? Why? _Why?_

The door creaked open in mid-thought, and her breath caught in her throat. **_He's here!_** She thought fearfully, and then it dawned on her that _she was alone_ with not even the cute Shippo or the impeccable timing of Inuyasha or the feministic Sango. She was _by herself_ in an _empty_ room… the possibilities are endless for him, she recognized. **_I am so stupid- I should have gone outside where there are people._**

Something padded softly down the hallway, and she began to hyperventilate, her inhales and exhales coming out irregularly and inconsistently. By habit Kagome ducked underneath her covers, although that did not help much. **_I don't want to die seeing his face. No no no no, please, just kill me while I'm under the blankets—_**

She flinched as the white covers were pulled back, and her hand flew up to protect her face. She quivered, curling even tighter in a ball, her eyes tightly closed. If she had a choice of dying in darkness or dying seeing his face one, last time….

"Kagome?"

It was a soft, _female_ voice, and she peeked out from between the slits of her fingers to find… Sango peering down on top of her. "Are you all right?"

**_It's all right, Kagome. YOU'RE all right._** She found herself having been holding her breath the entire time and released it loudly. "Yeah," she answered weakly, "I'm all right." **_For now._**

The older woman smiled dimly, the edges of her smile never making it quite fully. But Kagome saw the dull, brown eyes that didn't agree with the grin—the twinkle was gone, and she wondered if Sango would ever catch that hopeful glimmer again.

"So the police wants to meet with you today," she said, rising from her kneeled position and heading into her bedroom. Her voice still carried out into the living room, clear and precise. "While you were unconscious yesterday, Inuyasha reported the incident to the police. So far he's managed to press charges of physical assault, attempted murder, and property damage."

Kagome struggled to a sitting position and managed to do so successfully just as Sango returned with a new batch of clothes. "You're wearing out my closet," she joked softly, placing the attire beside her. Kagome didn't hear, or if she did, did not make any attempt to laugh.

"Why would he do that?" she asked, confused. "We aren't the best of friends, as you can probably tell."

The military officer helped her to her feet and guided her towards the restroom. "He may not look like it, but Inuyasha was born pretty much rich. All his life his dad's been giving him orders and steering him in the direction of Success, but you can see that he's slightly stubborn." Kagome thought it was an understatement. "It was around the end of law school when he finally had an epiphany, if you will, about his life, and it could be summed up in one, concise sentence: it sucked."

**_No duh._**

They had reached the bathroom, and Sango opened the door for her to enter. "So Inuyasha quit law before graduating, much to his dad's chagrin, divorced himself from his family, and started new. So now he's trying to find some way to survive in the world while taking on odd jobs. He hasn't really found his 'knack' yet, but all that work in law school wasn't wasted—he developed a sense of judicial duty, where it was _not_ OK to let someone get away with flagrance."

Kagome was moderately surprised. Inuyasha, a lawyer? His first impression was a stupid brute with muscles to back up. It was pretty much unexpected of him to have such a distinguished past. "So he's helping me because…?"

"Inuyasha's a good guy, believe it or not. He may not like you, but that does not make it any right to allow something like this to happen, and he knows that. He's an incredible friend if you look past his gruff exterior." Sango smiled, and it wavered just a bit as her eyes clouded slightly, and it was clear that she was thinking of a certain someone else.

Kagome felt a slight twinge of pity, but brushed it away. "Oh, never mind, sorry about that," the woman apologized, rubbing her eyes quickly. "I'm just a little emotional, that's all. You need to hurry up- you're scheduled to meet the police in half an hour."

The bathroom door shut in her face, and she was left standing there with a pair of slacks and sleeveless button shirt and an aching scalp, feeling grimy and dirty.

**_We all end up alone sometimes._**

-

The town had mainly pedestrians and few cars, and Sango was one of those many pedestrians. However small the municipality may be, there were always streets that crisscrossed, and had it not been for the experienced officer, Kagome would have been lost long ago on some street named after the fifth prime minister. Dodging many people in scaly costumes and outrageous makeup, she was nearly punctured in the abdomen by a specific man wearing yellowed horns. They looked very much realistic, and she dimly wondered how long it had taken him to create the thing. No doubt it _must_ be papier-mâché, but it was still sharp-looking. "Why don't you _not_ wear that hazard in the middle of public?" she nearly snapped, but Sango pulled her along before anything could be said.

It took time and tested patience, but the two finally reached the police station in time, and it took just a few more seconds to climb the steps and head into the room. "Registered appointment with a police officer," Sango declared, pulling Kagome right beside her.

The woman nodded affirmative and pushed a few buttons on the intercom. "Officer Kurasaka, I have an appointment scheduled for three o'clock here— excuse me, what's your name? Oh, OK—by the name of Higurashi."

The intercom crackled a bit before a low, deep voice answered. "All right. Send her in."

She nodded and motioned for a door by the side. "Just up the stairs and to the right." And without further ado, Sango took charge with a gasping Kagome following at heel.

The man was waiting behind a desk calmly as the two burst in, and he nodded in recognition towards the older woman. "Sango."

"Officer Kurasaka," she replied, bowing quickly before turning to leave.

"You may stay if you wish," he said pleasantly to her retreating back, and she hesitated, looking at Kagome- she looked neutral, neither caring nor spiteful.

"No, thank you, I will wait quietly outside until further commands," Sango responded before exiting.

As soon as the door closed, Officer Kurasaka shifted slightly in his chair so he was looking at her. "Ms. Higurashi, nice to see that you've already settled."

"Yes," she said tersely. Kagome was already fidgeting under his slightly scrutinizing stare- it was uncomfortable, and she felt out of place with such an ordered room. The diplomas were arranged neatly in a row, and the papers were crisp and clean and straight-edged.

"What happened to the other man who saw to me?" she couldn't help blurting out. He may have been unorganized and cluttered, but at least he had an air of genuine friendliness.

Officer Kurasaka's face fell somewhat, and he cleared his throat in an regrettable manner. **_It's like talking to smooth oil,_** she thought disgustedly. "He has had an unfortunate run-in with another person and inevitably retired his position permanently."

**_You mean he was murdered._** But she didn't say anything—just let him continue. "It is correct you are under current care of Inuyasha and Sango?"

"I'm not under the care of anybody," she responded flatly.

"But it says here you were caught shoplifting, so for the remainder of the two week parole, you are under their supervision for community service, _correct_?" He was deliberately trying to provoke her, and she grudgingly swallowed her anger. "Y-yes," Kagome ground out.

Kurasaka smiled patronizingly and shuffled his papers once more. "We are under the investigation of your pressed charges as of currently, and it will take a few days, if you do not mind waiting."

**_I do mind, actually._**

"But for now, it says under this transcript that you had been referred to work as a helper under Miroku's self-owned ice cream business. Due to his sudden… death, you are now being transferred to another location to complete the rest of your parole." The felt-tip pen he worked with squeaked under heavy pressure, and she winced slightly at the grating noise.

"You will be located to… Kouga's grocery business," he finished with a capping of his pen. She nodded once to show her understanding…

and then did a double take. "You mean where _Inuyasha_ works?"

-


End file.
